


Birth of a Hero

by cured_by_death



Category: The Maze Runner (Movies), The Maze Runner Series - All Media Types, The Maze Runner Series - James Dashner
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - No Maze (Maze Runner), Alternate Universe - Superheroes/Superpowers, Angst, Character Death, Did I Mention Fluff, Drama, F/F, F/M, Family Drama, Fights, First Dates, Fluff, I Will Go Down With This Ship, M/M, Slow Burn, Slow Burn-ish, The Flare, Violence, WICKED | WCKD Is Not Good, cause the fluff is real, everyone is 18/19, except the adults and chuck of course, ill update as i go, newt and sonya are twins, newtmas - Freeform, not really college though, thomas is an idiot but wbk, why do i always give newt a tragic past
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-09-08
Updated: 2019-04-07
Packaged: 2019-07-08 04:11:18
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 24
Words: 56,047
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15922607
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cured_by_death/pseuds/cured_by_death
Summary: Thomas is as normal as they can be, except for the fact that he has super powers. Well, at least he's supposed to. After 18 years of not knowing his gift, his parents send him to a school to learn his ability. During his journey of reaching his full potential, he makes friends, falls in love, and learns the shocking truth his family kept hidden from him. When the time comes, will he be able to become the hero he was destined to be and save the world? Or will he fail miserably?The Maze Runner Superhero AU (with tons of newtmas!)





	1. New Life

**Author's Note:**

> OKAY so i've had these first five (six?) chapters or so collecting dust for A YEAR. and i got tired of waiting so i spent the last two months writing the hell out of this (leading to carpal tunnel / tendinitis lol) im SUPER nervous about posting this, because I haven't seen or read a maze runner superhero au before - if you have, let me know! i've never found one :(  
> DISCLAIMER: obviously i dont own any of these characters, BUT i'm also borrowing some things from marvel and avatar the last airbender.  
> AND the beginning section in italics is technically the prologue. It takes place about four years earlier than the actual story.  
> ENJOY!!!! :)

_It was a snowy cold winter night. The only source of light was from the luminous moon that stood out in the black of the night sky. A young blonde girl, no more than thirteen or fourteen, was tossing and turning in her bed. Not from the lack of sleep, but from the struggle of attempting to wake up. This isn’t the first time she had dreams like this. For weeks, she’s been having these strange dreams, but they were different from the ones she usually had. They were more realistic, more vivid. And on rare occasions, her dreams would come true._

_The fight to awaken was still ongoing, even when her brother, whose hair color was identical to her own, came into her room trying to soothe her awake. But no soothing words or comforting touch could disturb her from her_ _subconscious_ _. She fought harder and harder until finally she shot up into a sitting position, trembling and hyperventilating._

_“What did you dream this time?” her brother asked in a thick accent._

_“A city,” she said in a less accented voice while she still struggled for breath. “People were screaming, running from something.” The cries of terror were still ringing in her ears. She can still see buildings crumbing to the ground. But that wasn’t what scared her the most. “A man was there, he looked like a rat. He was playing with these different colored crystals or something in his hand, grinning like he just conquered the world._

_“And there was a boy there, trying to protect everyone. But he was losing. He seemed sad, weak, like he was in pain.” She had no idea who that boy was, as she didn’t know a lot of the people she had dreamt about recently. But this boy was different. There was something about him she couldn’t put her finger on, but he was important. And somehow, she knew he would meet this boy._

_“What else?” her brother asked._

_“The boy. I think he dies.”_

* * *

 

_Beep. Beep. Beep._

The brunette boy slammed his hand down on his alarm clock to shut up its incessant beeping. The time read 6:45 in the morning. Groaning, the boy rolled over and buried himself back into the blankets. He was not looking forward to today.

What was today? Today was the day Thomas was leaving for Ms. Paige’s School for Gifted Individuals. Sounds like an all girls boarding school, but it’s not. It’s a school for teenagers and young adults to find, learn, and control their powers. Oh yeah, Thomas has a super power. What super power? He still isn’t sure.

Most kids discover their ability at the beginning of puberty, but at eighteen, Thomas’s ability had yet to reveal itself. That’s why his parents - his dad Vince, who had super strength and could fly, and his mother, Mary, who could heal and resurrect - had decided that they should send Thomas to the school to learn his ability. ‘It’ll be like going to college’ his mother tried to convince him. Ava Paige, the director of the school, was famous for helping people find their gifts when they wouldn’t present themselves on their own. So after spending the summer with his family and friends, it was time for Thomas to finally leave.

The only thing Thomas knew about his power was that it was connected to the medallion he wore around his neck. Inside it rests a gem. His earliest memories consist of his parents reminding him constantly that he could never take the medallion off, as the gem was the source of his power. Yet, eighteen years later, it proved to be nothing but a necklace. But he never ever took it off. A few times he tried to, but something inside himself stopped him.

His parents were also very vague whenever Thomas asked them about the possibilities of his power. It always seemed like they knew more than they let on. How did they know the gem was his source of power without knowing what his actual power was? But he learned a long time ago trying to figure it out was useless. They would never budge.

While Thomas was excited to learn his power , he was afraid. Afraid of leaving home for the first time, afraid his power would never come, afraid of what his power might be. He hoped it wasn’t something lame. He met a guy once, his name was Paul, and all he could do was turn into a squirrel.

The only plus side of this was that his best friend since preschool, Teresa, was going with him as well. She decided to take a gap year before college to learn more about her power and other powered people, but Thomas knows it was just so he didn’t have to endure this alone. She spent so many nights consoling him whenever he would get upset about not knowing his power. And while he wants her to go ahead to college, he’s incredibly grateful to have her by his side.

Her gift came around when she was fifteen. She could read other people’s minds. Thomas found out the hard way, since Teresa would reveal his embarrassing thoughts out loud. At least he wouldn’t be totally alone on this crazy journey.

“Thomas!” His mother’s voice came from outside the his bedroom door, followed by knocking. “You better be awake, your train leaves at 8:15!”

Sighing, the boy grumpily rolled out of bed, told his mother that he would shower and be down for breakfast. He rinsed himself as fast as possible, got dressed, and joined the rest of his family for the meal. His father was reading the paper while sipping his coffee. Chuck, his younger twelve year old brother, was eating cereal and watching a show on his tablet, while his mother was cooking on the stove.

“Morning Thomas,” Vince greeted. “You excited for today?”

“I really don’t know Dad,” Thomas admitted, plopping down onto one of the kitchen chairs. “Are you sure about this?”

“Of course!” Mary exclaimed. “Thomas, we just want you to know what your gift is. It won’t be forever. Just try it out,” she said as she served him his breakfast. “If you don’t like it after a little while, we will pull you out and try some other things. Just give it a shot. I know Ava, and she is very good at her job. She’ll help you out, I’m sure of it,” his mother smiled.

“I can’t wait until you get your power!” Chuck squealed. “I hope you can fly or something!”

“Thanks buddy,” Thomas said ruffling his hair. “You gonna miss me when I’m gone?”

“Nope. I’m gonna play all your video games!”

“The hell you will!”

“Boys!” Mary yelled. “We need to drive Thomas to the train station in twenty minutes. Get all your stuff together.

They finished their breakfast, got ready, and they were off.

* * *

 

Now, they were at the station, Thomas getting ready to board the train. He would too, if only his mother would stop crying and hugging him with a firm grip.

“I’m gonna miss you so much. Oh, my baby boy!”

“Mom, please. You know it won’t be forever,” Thomas said, holding her tighter. He was slightly annoyed and embarrassed that she hadn’t let go of him yet, but then he remembered how much he would miss her too. So he let her have her moment, pretending that he didn’t feel like crying too.

She let go after that, and Thomas and Vince exchanged a few words and hugged as well. Finally, there was Chuck.  “So you really not gonna miss me?” Thomas teased.

Chuck quickly ran into Thomas and squeezed him tight. “Of course I will doofus,” he mumbled into his brother’s chest. Thomas wrapped his arms around his little brother, actually trying to hold his tears in. Of course the little beast would be the one to make him cry. “Knock if off kiddo, you’re gonna make me cry.”

“Cause you’re a big baby.”

They shared a laugh and let go, Thomas ruffling the boys hair.

“Thomas!” a voice called to his left.

He looked and saw Teresa walking over with her parents, each holding some of her luggage for her. “Hey Teresa,” he greeted and hugged the girl when she came over to him. “You ready for this?”

“Yeah, it’d be cool to learn more about my powers, especially if I could get more!”

It wasn’t uncommon for gifted individuals to have more than one power. Those with something like super speed or strength usually only had the one. However, it was possible for others to have at least two. Teresa, for example, could take her mind reading, practice it, and possibly develop telepathy. It’s been done before, but it doesn’t always happen.

“Hey Chuck!” Teresa hugged the chubby boy. “You gonna miss your stinky older brother?”

“No way!”

“Hey, I don’t stink!”

“Your feet kinda do Tom.”

The sound of the train approaching broke up their playful banter. After last goodbyes - Mary crying again - the pair boarded the train. Their new life awaited them.

“Here we go,” Teresa after they put their luggage away and sat down.

“Yeah, here we go.”

* * *

 

A five hour train ride wasn’t too bad. They passed the time reading, talking, listening to music, and sleeping. Once they got off the train, they were met with a car service outside that Ava Paige had sent for them. They were only fifteen minutes away from their new school.

“Why do they call it a school anyway?” Thomas asked. “It’s not actually a _school_ school.”

“It kind of is,” Teresa said. “There’s only about fifty or so kids there. It’s built like a school. Those who didn’t go to school can take actually classes and still get a high school diploma. We also take classes that help channel our powers, how to control them, and learn about the history of gifted individuals. It’s pretty wicked.”

“So you think they’ll give us homework?” Thomas teased.

“Shut up, you dork.”

The drive was pretty quick. Thomas was so lost in his thoughts that he didn’t really much pay attention. Glade City was supposed to be a beautiful place. Large, pristine skyscrapers, a city rich with vast culture, and on one side there was an open glade - hence the name Glade City - just before reaching a forest with mountains.  But he couldn’t focus on that. His nerves were starting to set in. He was going to be around other kids with powers. A lot of them would already know their gifts and how to use them, while Thomas was completely clueless. He hoped they wouldn’t make fun of him for that.

“We’re here!” Teresa yelled.

The car reached a large iron gate that opened after a couple of seconds, revealing a few large white buildings. It seemed like a college campus of sorts. Some buildings were clearly where classes took place, and others were normal houses. He assumed that’s where he would be staying. Luckily, he knew he and Teresa were staying in the same building, just different rooms. The driver pulled up to the main building, and dropped them off. He gave instructions to wait in the lobby for Ava Paige to come and meet them.

Thomas looked around seeing the other kids and adults walking about. They all seemed totally normal, and none of them appeared to be using their powers. A few kids were playing football, some were laying on the grass chatting, and others walking to their classes Thomas assumed. He had a good feeling about this place.

Then there were two blondes sitting under a tree, a boy and a girl. The girl was talking to the boy next to her, while the boy was reading a book and apparently ignoring her. His hair was messy, but still looked like it was styled that way, and he was quite skinny yet somewhat muscular. And the sunlight made it look as if there was a halo on his head. Thomas could faintly hear Teresa saying something to him, but he felt kind of lost in a trance.

He was too distracted that he didn’t see the tall kid coming. He bumped into him and fell onto the ground, luckily not hitting his head on the pavement. “Tom, you okay?”

“Yeah,” Thomas said getting up, turning to look at the kid he bumped into. “I’m so sor-”

His words were cut short when he was being grabbed by the collar of his shirt. “You stupid or something greenie?!” the boy yelled.

He was tall, definitely strong. His brown hair simply a buzz cut. His nose seemed slightly crooked and his eyebrows stood out the most. They were...unique, which is the nice way of putting it. However, the anger in the kids eyes really scared Thomas. “I’m sorry, I wasn’t watching where I was going!”

“Gally, let him down!” A voice yelled.

Thomas turned to see a muscular Asian boy walking over, his hair perfectly gelled up. It seemed like not even the strongest winds could make it fall over. Although he seemed like a tough guy, Thomas could sense the kindness and generosity radiating behind the boys tougher features.

Gally let go of him reluctantly, huffed, and walked away. “Thanks,” Thomas mumbled to the Asian boy.

“Names Minho greenie,” he said, offering his hand to Thomas.

Thomas shook the boys hand, and introduced him to Teresa as well. “You two new here?” Minho asked.

“Yeah, we’re supposed to meet Ava Paige in the lobby,” Teresa answered.

“Probably to show you to your rooms. Your first few days here are pretty much just a tour and talking. Then you get assigned to classes and a bunch of klunk. Listen, I gotta run, but I’ll catch you guys around!”  And then the boy was gone.

After picking up his things, Thomas and Teresa walked into the lobby to be immediately met by a tall blonde woman, hair put up in a bun, wearing all white. She turned at the sound of the doors opening and smiled at the two.

“You must be Thomas and Teresa,” she said. Once they nodded in response, she continued. “My name is Ava Paige. Welcome. Our goal here is to help you learn how to use and control your powers. Now, if you’ll follow me, I’ll take you to your living quarters and have a tour arranged for you.”

The woman spoke with an authoritative tone, but it still seemed genuine. Like she actually cared for them. Thomas smiled at the warmth that was radiating off of her. Despite his encounter with that Gally kid, Thomas actually had a good feeling about this place.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so? what do you guys think? please let me know because my anxiety was going crazy over posting this or just deleting it.  
> updates will be on a weekly basis (if i cant update ill give you a heads up and WONT end on a cliffhanger, cause i hate that and i dont wanna do that to you) the story gets better i promise!!! especially when we get to the fluffy shit.  
> anyway, enjoy your day!  
> (and if you feel like it, leave your guesses on the characters powers in the comments, im just curious to what you guys think they have!)


	2. Friendship to Last

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i updated a day early because i won't be around this weekend.time to meet pretty much the rest of main characters. and the house that they live in? it's pretty much like the house in ahs coven if you've ever seen that. ill leave a link in the end notes in case you haven't so you can see what the house basically looks like.  
> and how's Thomas gonna react when he meets Newt for the first time? I can assure you, he's going to be a mess. and ill explain why in the end notes too.  
> ENJOY! :)

Ava had brought Thomas and Teresa to their new home. It was a large white house - literally, everything was white: the walls, the floor, the furniture, the fireplace, even the piano! And why is there a piano anyway? - with two floors. The first floor consisted of a large living room, a kitchen, dining room, and an study. The second floor was all bedrooms with connecting bathrooms. The furniture was way more fancy than he was accustomed to, and it kind of made this feel more like a vacation. The good feeling he had only got better.

“You will each have a roommate. It’s possible they are in classes at the moment so you may not meet them until tonight,” Ava explained as they walked up the grand staircase towards their rooms. “Today is for you to just settle in and meet fellow students.”

“We treat you all like adults here, so you are all responsible for cleaning up after yourselves. You cook your own meals, or you can go out. We do have a cafeteria here as well. However, you must let your house officer know you are going out off grounds. Don’t be afraid of the title - the officer is a student as well. They are just responsible for making sure you do your part. Your officer here is Albert. And this is Teresa’s room,” Ava said, stopping at one of the bedrooms. “Settle in and meet downstairs when you are done.”

Teresa went in and Ava lead Thomas to his room. “This is your room Thomas. Settle in and meet downstairs please.” 

With that, Ava turned and left, leaving Thomas standing outside the door. When he opened it, he wasn’t expecting to find a room so big. There was a bed on each side of the room, nightstands accompanying them, two large wardrobes, a desk near the floor-to-ceiling windows, and a door that he presumed lead to a bathroom. And there was someone in the room seated at the desk. “Hi I’m -”

As soon as the person turned around, Thomas found out he already knew his roommate. “Well what do ya know?” Minho remarked. “Didn’t think the greenie would be my roommate! Come on in shank!”

Thomas did as he was told, putting his stuff on the vacant bed that had been made, while the other was in disarray.  Apparently Minho was going to be a somewhat messy roommate, but Thomas could live with that. Hell, he’s happy they gave him clean sheets to sleep in. “It’s good that I got someone I’ve gotten acquainted with already.”

“What, you don’t consider me a friend?” Minho teased, faking hurt.

Once Thomas settled in as much as he felt like doing - he could always unpack later or tomorrow - he and Minho went downstairs to see Teresa and Ava in the living room. “Ah Minho. I wasn’t sure you were in,” Ava said. “Glad to see you two got to meet. And this is Teresa.”

“Yeah, we’ve met,” Minho said, offering a nod. “I could take them to the cafeteria and give them the tour, if that’s where you were doing next. Besides, Harriet and Aris haven’t gone shopping yet so there’s not really any food.”

“That would be lovely Minho. Thank you,” Ava said, getting up to leave. “I’ll be back tomorrow to discuss scheduling classes. If you need anything, I’ll be in my office.”

Thomas and Teresa thanked the woman and she left. This place isn’t so bad.

* * *

 

Minho briefly showed them around, but he was too hungry to do the whole official tour, so they decided to eat. Walking into the cafeteria, Thomas saw about thirty or so kids sitting down and eating dinner. There were probably about fifteen tables, and at the one side of the cafeteria was where everyone would line up to grab their food. Minho lead the way, telling him and Teresa the good food choices and to ‘stay away from the disgusting thing they call meatloaf here’, and brought them over to a group of his friends. 

One was a dark skinned boy with a very short buzz cut. Then there were two tan skinned girls, one with short hair barely reaching her shoulders and the other had long locks. Finally, there was a light skinned blonde girl who had her hair tied in a braided ponytail - Thomas thinks she looks like the girl he saw outside earlier - and a thin white brunette boy next to her. Based on appearances, they all seemed alright. “Hey everyone, this is Thomas and Teresa. Be nice, they’re kinda cool,” Minho said as he sat down next to the girl with the short hair, wrapping a hand around her waist. Must be his girlfriend.

They all greeted the two with warm welcomes and introduced themselves, and the first thing Thomas did was ask what everyone’s power was. Minho was a firebender, Brenda - his girlfriend - was an earthbender, Sonya had precognition and power augmentation, Alby was an airbender, Aris was a waterbender, and Harriet had teleportation. Of course Thomas had to be the lamest one in the group.

“So what are your powers?” Sonya asked. Thomas noted the smallest hint of an accent laced in the blonde’s voice. He also noted that she had yet to stop staring at him with a puzzled look on her face. Like she was trying to figure him out. Or maybe she was checking him out?

“I can read minds,” Teresa said. “I’m not as good as I’d like to be, but I can usually get most people. For instance,” Teresa paused and closed her eyes. After a couple seconds, she opened them again. “I can tell Alby isn’t too fond of newcomers in the group, and Aris thinks I’m pretty.”

Aris flustered and Alby looked down at his lap. “Sorry about that,” Alby apologized.

“He’s sore about newbies since a certain girl broke his heart,” Minho teased.

“It’s okay,” Teresa replied. “And Tom here still doesn’t know his gift, but I’m sure he will soon.”

“Aw, don’t worry about that,” Harriet soothed. “Lots of kids don’t know their powers when they come here.”

“Yeah, just stick with us. We’ll show you the ropes,” Brenda chimed in, cuddling into Minho. “Besides, if Minho likes you, you’re pretty much stuck with us.”

“Who’s stuck with us?” an accented voice cut in.

Thomas turned his head to find the source of the voice, and froze on the spot. He saw a tall skinny blonde haired boy, wearing black tight fitted jeans,  a black tee and a leather jacket. His eyes were a dark brown, almost like chocolate. Then it clicked: that was the boy he saw under the tree earlier! 

But something felt...weird. Not a bad weird, just...weird. Like something was standing between them right now, some unseeable force. And he couldn’t stop looking at him.  _ What the hell is happening? _

He was brought back to reality when Teresa nudged him. “Calm down,” she whispered. “I can hear you freaking out up in your head. You’re so obvious you might as well be drooling.”

“Newt, this is Teresa and Thomas. Guys, this is Newt,” Minho said.

“Like the lizard?” Thomas blurted out, groaning internally at how stupid he sounded. Even Teresa cringed.

“Yes, like the bloody lizard. Original joke mate,” Newt said as he sat down.  At least he had a good sense of humor. Thomas just noticed he was wearing wrist braces on each hand that were  barely peeking out from his jacket sleeve. Was he hurt?

But Newt. Thomas was back in that trance like state again. What was it with this kid? Yeah, he would definitely be considered attractive, but that’s not the reason Thomas is so drawn to him. It’s something else. 

An elbow to the ribs from Teresa brought him back. “Uh, what?”

“You nodded off into space there Thomas. You alright?”

Oh my God, Newt was talking to him. Newt was talking. To him. And yet, he was frozen in his seat. His mouth was open, yes, but words would not come out. He was trying so hard to talk so they wouldn’t think he was weird, but he was failing. His brain is fried. What a great first impression.

“He’s doing it again,” Alby said. “Is he alright?”

“He’s fine,” Teresa said, kicking Thomas under the table. “He does that sometimes.”

Thomas apologized once again, and went on to eat dinner as the others went on to talk normal conversations. He didn’t get to talk to Newt as much as he liked since he was at the other end of the table - and Sonya and Newt were pretty much talking to each other non-stop - but it really bugged Thomas that something was up with Newt.

* * *

 

“Okay, what was that?” Teresa asked on the way back to their house.

Of course she wasn’t going to let this go.

“I don’t know T. I really don’t know,” Thomas mumbled.

What  _ was  _ that anyway? Thomas never felt attracted to someone instantly like that before. Maybe attraction wasn’t the right word, because he wasn’t attracted to Newt. Although Newt would definitely be considered very attractive. Now that he thinks of it, Newt was  _ definitely  _ attractive. Thomas would be lying if he said he didn’t think Newt was attractive. Oh, he most certainly was. Thomas never labeled his sexuality before - he’s had a girlfriend yes, but he always knew he wasn’t completely straight. And Newt just seemed to further that theory.

But still, that wasn’t it. Thomas doesn’t believe in love at first sight, as its just some made up movie cliché, but he instantly felt a connection with Newt the second he laid eyes on him. He just felt...attached to him. Like there was a secret link binding them together. He just felt drawn to him, that was his only way of explaining it. Maybe that’s his power: he attracts people, Thomas mused.

Then Thomas realized he never got to ask Newt what power he had. What kind of powers do mysterious attractive hipster guys with blonde hair have?

“Stop rambling in your head!” Teresa chuckled. “Anyway, I tried to read his mind to see what he thought of you,” Teresa said. “Especially after the lizard comment.”

“And?” Thomas asked a little too hopefully. He doesn’t need to cause any more trouble today, especially after that Gally kid.

“I can’t.”

Makes sense. Teresa was still learning how to use her gift. She couldn’t always read everyone's mind. “Oh. Well you’re still learning.”

“No, that’s not it,” Teresa said stopping in her tracks. “I can’t. I couldn’t find any kind of connection. It’s like there’s something stopping me from trying to get into his head, like something sensed I was trying to read his mind and pushed me out.”

So Newt’s power was blocking people from reading his mind? That’s….not really a power. That’s more of luck. Thomas would give anything for Teresa not being able to read his mind.

“I can hear you in there!” Teresa yelled, smacking his head playfully.

“Sorry,” Thomas chuckled. “Do you know what his power is by any chance?”

“No, but I overheard Sonya say something about his wrist braces that he was wearing stopping them or something like that. I didn’t want to intrude on the conversation.”

Thomas didn’t know it was possible to stop someone’s powers. And with a bracelet too? What kind of powers needed to be stop? Thomas didn’t know that many superpowers, and frankly, he didn’t know much about the history of gifted individuals either. Currently, there’s only about thirty heroes, at least in the Hero Legion - the organization of people with powers -  and Thomas doesn’t even know where they come from. He would have to ask Ms. Paige if he could get enrolled in some history classes here, or at least where the library was.

Thomas and Teresa returned home a couple of minutes later. The first thing Thomas did was take a nice long shower. Then he got changed for bed and brushed his teeth. He plopped down on his bed and called his parents to tell them how his first day had been. They were happy to hear he had already made friends, and Chuck was jealous that Thomas had this opportunity. 

After he hung up, he glanced at the clock and saw it was just after ten. Might as well go to bed.

Minho came through a few minutes later, stripping out of his clothes. “I am beat,” the Asian sighed. “I’m showering and taking the longest sleep ever.”

Thomas just chuckled and waited for his roomate to return. He felt the urge to ask questions about Newt, but he was afraid it would come off wrong. Maybe start with asking what his gift is? That would be okay, since Thomas actually didn’t know.

Ten minutes later, Minho came out and sunk right into his bed. “So greenie, how was your first day?”

“Pretty good, except for Gally,” Thomas chuckled. “Hey by the way, what is Newt here for? I mean what’s his power?”

Minho stood silent for a moment, apparently contemplating his answer. “I honestly don’t know the name for it. It’s complicated. If I were to name it, I’d say he’s a magician or a witch, but then Newt would kick the klunk out of me,” Minho mused. “It’d be better if you ask him.”

_ What the hell is klunk?  _ “What house does he stay in?”

“He doesn’t,” Minho said sadly. “His gift can be somewhat dangerous, so he has to stay in the more secure building. It’s designed so you can’t use your powers. I was there for a bit until I got myself under control. That’s how I met Newt.”

Dangerous gift?  How could ‘magic’ be dangerous? And what could be more dangerous than fire?

And why the hell does he feel connected to Newt? _ Maybe it was magic _ Thomas thought.

“Anyway, enough questions for one night greenie. Get some sleep. And by the way, Gally is kind of a friend of ours. He’s got a temper, but he’s not a horrible guy, so try to make nice with him.”

“Yeah, okay,” Thomas said, turning around in his bed. He did knock the guy over, so it made sense he was angry. Thomas will just have to try and make a better impression next time.

But Newt. He didn’t seem dangerous. He seemed like the nicest person at the table. How could someone so nice be so dangerous? And if he was, why was he allowed in the cafeteria? Why was he allowed out of his room?

The braces. They stopped his powers. Teresa said that. So was Newt never allowed to leave the grounds? What kind of life is that?   
“You’re thinking too loud, greenie. Slim it!”

Thomas sighed. Minho was right. Tomorrow was another day. So he drifted off to sleep, trying not to think of a certain blonde boy.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> okay so I know we all love to see Thomas freaking out over Newt. but it isn't love at first sight - although Thomas definitely finds Newt attractive, who doesn't ;) but it's something else that is drawing him to Newt.  
> and what do you think of everyone's powers? like or dislike? and you find out what Newt's power is soon enough, don't worry ;)  
> here's the link to what the house would look like! https://hookedonhouses.net/2015/09/08/the-historic-new-orleans-mansion-from-american-horror-story-coven/  
> im gonna be honest, this story starts at a slow pace, but once it hits a certain chapter, it's gonna go faster than Minho and Thomas running. hope you enjoyed! :)


	3. Two Hearts

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> newtmas. smol aris. more newtmas.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> time to learn Newt's power! enjoy :)

Thomas’s first class: meditation. According to Ms. Paige, a clear mind can help bring one’s ability forward, allowing the person to solely focus on finding their gift. Teresa seemed to have no problem, following the instructors orders to take in deep breaths and let them out. Thomas, on the other hand, was never good at this. He tried it once a couple of years ago, but just couldn’t reach the same state of clarity as everyone else could. And after being unable to remain in a certain position for that long, he collapsed into Teresa sending both of them to the floor.

Later, he had a meeting with Ms. Paige once again, discussing possible powers that he could possess. Her conclusion was an airbender. Out of all four elements, they were the hardest to achieve. Once found, however, it wasn’t too difficult to master. Fire and earth were the harder elements to master, but easily discovered. Thomas was glad. He rather discovered he created wind than an earthquake or a wildfire.

“Does airbending have to do with my medallion?” Thomas asked.

Ava looked over at the necklace Thomas presented her, studying the small stone in the center. “Who gave that to you? If I may ask.”

“My parents. Apparently, it has something to do with my ability.”

“Interesting,” Ava said. There was something in her voice that Thomas didn’t like, but he wasn’t sure what it was. “I will definitely do some research. There are so many powers that haven’t been around in decades, so I have not seen them all. Perhaps there will be something in our archives.”

Learning about the history of gifted individuals would be super cool actually. “Ms. Paige, would it be possible for me to learn about our history? I don’t really know much about it.”

“Of course, but for the next few weeks, let’s work on discovering your power,” Ava said. “That is the main reason why you are here. Think of nothing but your gift. Once we discover what it is, we will evaluate you and start teaching you how to control it. At that stage, I can allow you to do whatever research into our archives you would like.”

“Okay,” Thomas said, somewhat disappointedly since he had to wait. “Thank you Ms. Paige.”

Thomas left the woman’s office and decided to talk a walk around the school. There was supposed to be a large beautiful garden near the west side of the grounds. Maybe that would allow Thomas to focus a bit more.

He passed a few people knew along the way, like Brenda, Aris, and Harriet, each of them heading off to training or classes. Then he found himself thinking of Newt, maybe the one he liked most of all of them. Thomas was kind of hoping he would run into him, but he had no clue where to look for the blonde.

Thomas finally reached the gardens and was stunned at what he saw. It was probably just under an acre of land, covered in all kinds of flowers and trees. Blues, purples, pinks, reds, every color imaginable. He found an empty patch of grass and lied down, glancing up at the sky. He could hear the birds chirping and the wind blowing around him.

Wind. Air.

Maybe he could try to channel his gift out here?

Thomas closed his eyes and tried to focus as best as he could. But what was he supposed to focus on? Air? He remembers Aris saying that he needed to focus on the flow of water in order for him to bend it, but how does Thomas focus on the flow of air?

“Fancy seeing you here, greenie.”

Thomas flinched and opened his eyes to see someone standing above him. Not just someone.

“Oh, hey Newt,” Thomas smiled, moving to sit up. “What are you doing over here?”

“I like to come here and read or draw. It’s so quiet,” Newt said, moving to sit down next to Thomas. “How about you?”

“Trying to focus on my power.”

“Oh, am I interrupting? Because I can leave-”

“No!” Thomas said, probably a bit louder than he should have. “It’s fine. I’d rather talk to you.”

Newt smiled. “Good that.”

God, if Thomas thought Newt looked gorgeous indoors, he didn’t have words to describe how the sunlight made him look. It was as if there was a halo over his blonde hair. His dark brown eyes were sparkling. He was an angel.

Okay, Thomas will admit it. He’s got a small crush on Newt. But that still didn’t explain the bond he felt.

“So what is your power anyway?” Newt asked, breaking Thomas out of his trance.

“Um, Ms. Paige thinks it’s airbending, but she said she will still look into it.”

“She’s always right about these things,” Newt said. “One of her powers is knowing other people’s powers.”

“What’s your power?” Thomas asked.

“It’s hard to explain really,” Newt said. “You know Exemplars?”

Exemplars. Those were the awesomest gifted individuals ever. They could master water, earth, air and fire bending, while also possibly having an additional power or two as well. Other than that, Thomas didn’t really know anything about them. “I’m kind of similar to that, not with elements, but almost the same amount of power. Ms. Paige says I can harness Chaos Magic. It’s the rarest gift of all, besides Exemplars of course.”

Thomas thinks he has heard of chaos magic before. The name of it makes it sound horrible.

“I can manipulate things and move things and bunch of weird stuff. Minho called me a witch once and splashed water on me,” Newt chuckled. Then he looked down and gestured to the braces on his arms. “I’m supposed to wear these whenever I’m not in my room. It suppresses my abilities. I’ve pretty much got my powers under control, but they never really stop growing.”

“There’s a good side and dark side to every single ability,” the blonde continued.  “Firebenders can create light and warmth, or set a city on fire. People who have premonitions can try to prevent someone from getting hurt, or use them to their advantage and personal gain. I can essentially destroy the world and alter reality if I wanted to,” Newt mused. “But I just want to learn how to control it and not hurt anyone. That’s why I’m still here.”

“How long have you been here?” Thomas asked.

“Three years.”

Three years? And Newt is still here? “Ava says we can stay as long as we want and leave whenever we want. Me, Alby, Minho, all of us. We stay because we want to fully master our abilities so we don’t hurt anyone. Minho’s accidentally scorched me once or twice, and I’ve made Alby levitate on multiple occasions.”

“At least you guys have cool powers,” Thomas mumbled. “I have nothing.”

“I’d say that pretty face of yours is an awesome power,” Newt teased.

…

Newt just called him pretty. _Okay, stay calm. Don’t blush._ Except he was. He was blushing hard. Okay, play it cool. “Not as pretty as yours,” Thomas retorted, earning a laugh from the blonde. It was like music to his ears.

“I like you, Tommy.”

Tommy. _Tommy._ Oh my God, he gets a nickname. From Newt. From the cute blonde British boy. “I like you too Newt.” And boy, did Thomas like him. He felt a tug towards him. Some sort of hidden connection. Or maybe he was just imagining it. He decided to just ignore the feeling and focus on Newt instead.

They spent another hour in the gardens, laughing and sharing stories, talking about each other’s pasts. They may have only just met yesterday, but Thomas feels like he’s known Newt forever.

* * *

 

The sun was starting to set over the campus. Teresa was coming back from her one on one session with her instructor. She had felt good about her first day, and hoped Thomas did as well. By this time next year, they could have their gifts almost fully mastered. “Hey, Teresa!” a voice called.

Teresa looked to her right and saw Aris walking over to her. “How was your first day?”

“It was good, thanks. I’m actually on my way back to the house for dinner. Are you gonna be there?”

“Yeah, I’m heading there too. M-mind if I walk you?”

Teresa was inwardly chuckling at Aris. She didn’t have to be a mind reader to know that he was nervous. “Of course, and calm down Aris. I’m not gonna bite,” she teased.

Aris seemed like a nice guy. Definitely shy and nervous, but also kind and gentle. The walk back was filled with some small talk, about their gifts and families and such. When they entered their home, Teresa was somewhat shocked at the commotion in the house. Minho and Harriet were arguing in the kitchen, while Newt and Sonya were fighting in the dining room over how to set the table. “What’s going on?”

“Celebratory dinner for your first day!” Brenda said, coming in from the living room. “We’re trying to make it as best as we can.”

“Yeah, if Minho only knew how to cook!”

“And if Sonya would set the table properly as if people will be eating at it!”

“Thank goodness you're here,” Thomas said, coming from the living room as well. “It’s been crazy.”

“I can tell.”

Surprisingly, the dinner went smoothly. Minho and Harriet cooked an excellent meal, and afterwards everyone gathered in the living room to talk and hang out.

“Okay, greenie tradition. We do a little truth or dare,” Minho said. “Which one of you is first?”

“Tom!” Teresa yelled, instantly saving herself. “And I’ll know if any of you lie by the way.”

Thomas cursed under his breath at his friend and answered all the embarrassing truths that were asked. Meanwhile, Teresa decided to channel her powers and try reading Newt’s mind again. No matter what, she could always get some kind of thought from a person, even if it was just that they were feeling happy or hungry. But with Newt, there was nothing.

Said blonde glanced in her direction with a small smirk and a raised eyebrow, getting up from his spot on the sofa and moving to sit beside her on the floor. “I can feel you, ya know,” Newt whispered.

“Huh?”

“I can sense you trying to get in my head,” he chuckled. “You can’t.”

“No, I can’t,” Teresa admitted. “How come?”

“I can block you,” Newt said with a smug smile.

“How?”

“Just one of my abilities I guess. I may not be able to harness the rest of my powers with my braces on, but that one I can still use.”

Interesting. The ability to keep Teresa out of his head. She only wished Thomas had that. The amount of times she has heard something inappropriate or gross in his head has scarred her for life.

“What are you two girls whispering about over there?” Alby asked.

“How you’re so ugly,” Newt remarked.

* * *

 

After cleaning up and everyone declaring they were tired, Thomas was still slightly wired. It was a great day, and he was glad he had bonded with everyone so quickly. Alby, although wary of newcomers, warmed up to him and Teresa quickly. Minho already felt like a brother to him. Brenda was feisty, Harriet was sweet, Sonya was awesome, and Aris was funny. And Newt was all of the above.

He was walking Newt to the front door to gather every last moment he could with the blonde. It’s stupid to already feel so attached after just meeting, but Thomas can’t help himself. It’s like a part of him is calling out to Newt and vice versa. He hopes he isn’t wrong about their connection.

“Well, Tommy. This has been fun. How do you like it here?”  
“It’s pretty great actually. I was skeptical at first, but now I’m glad I came.” A certain blonde may or may not have something to do with that decision.

“I’m glad you came too,” Newt said.

That smile, the closeness - how did they end up so close? Thomas was just walking him to the front door! - just Newt’s presence was intoxicating. Thomas was staring deep into Newt’s eyes, not blinking as every second looking at Newt was not to be missed. Seconds passed, maybe minutes, possibly hours. Who knows? If Newt was going to make a move to leave, neither was Thomas.

At last, Newt finally blinked out of their staring contest and rubbed the back of his neck. “I’ll uh, I’ll see you tomorrow,” Newt said walking out of the door.

“Uh, yeah. Bye.”

Just as he was about to close the door, Thomas called out to him, making the blonde turn around. “What is it, Tommy?”

“That. How come you call me Tommy?”

“Oh, sorry. It just came out. Why, do you not like it?” Newt asked, his smile turning into a frown thinking that Thomas was upset with him.

“No, I do! It’s just...I was just curious is all. I like when you call me Tommy.”

Newt smiled again. “Well. In that case then, goodnight _Tommy_.”

And then Newt turned around and left. Thomas shut the door, took a shower, called his family to tell them about his first day, and went to bed. Not before Minho making a remark to him of course. “What’s gotten you all smiley?”

“Oh nothing.”

He lied. It was everything.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> just in case you didn't know, Newt is basically Scarlet Witch from marvel. hope you enjoyed! :)


	4. Miracles

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hey guys! sorry im only updating weekly, my hands are still healing. once they fully heal, i just have the last four/five chapters to write, review the rest, and ill start updating more often!  
> anyway, enjoy! :)

His first week had passed, and Thomas was no closer to unlocking his supposed power. Ms. Paige had taken it upon herself to help him try to channel his power, but nothing seemed to be working. Thomas had given up on trying to achieve his potential. He would rather just give up, go home, and try to be a normal teenager. Hell, he had been one for eighteen years already.

Harriet had talked with Thomas last night, trying to tell him it was okay that he didn’t find it yet. She explained that when she got to the school, it took her two months before she was able to teleport, and another three to teleport where she chose, not randomly. The talk made him feel a bit better, but he was still lacking confidence. 

He had come home early from his session today, Ms. Paige sensing his frustration - and ‘a frustrated mind will not help in bringing out his gift’ - so he wasn’t expecting anyone to be back yet. He opened the front door and heard music coming from inside the house. It was a piano. There was one in the living room, but Thomas didn’t know that any of his housemates could play. He just thought that it was for the decor. 

He peered his head through the doorway and it took him by surprise. It wasn’t one of his housemates playing that gorgeous melody. It was the same person who was on his mind constantly. 

Newt had his eyes closed and he let his hands wander across the keys with minimal effort. He must have known this piece for years because he had yet to open his eyes. He seemed to be in his own little world, getting lost in the music. Thomas envied him. What he would give if he was able to have such focus and get lost in something.

When Newt had finished, Thomas applauded him - especially since his hands hadn’t fallen off after playing like that - causing the blonde to startle. “Jesus, Tommy!”

“Sorry,” Thomas chuckled, walking over to him. “I didn’t know you could play.”

“Yeah, since I was six. Mum insisted.” There was slight annoyance in his voice, but his smile betrayed him. He must have been close to his parents. He probably missed them a lot, like Thomas missed his. 

Thomas sat down next to him on the small bench and looked at the piano. There was no sheet music there. “You played that from memory?”

“Yeah, it’s one of my favorites. ‘I Give Up’ by Elijah Bossenbroek. Known it for about five years, and I never get tired of playing it.”

“Could you play some more?” 

Newt seemed to be surprised by this. “Really? You - you want me to play for you?”

“Yeah, I do. Why? Do you not want to?”

“I’d love too, actually. It’s just...I haven’t played for anyone in a long time. I just assumed no one really wanted to hear it,” Newt said sadly. “Not even Sonya.”

Really? Newt’s - girlfriend? Or girl he liked? - didn’t want to hear him play? Do they not realize how talented he is!? “Well then, they’re stupid.”

Then Newt smiled, that perfect smile of his. If someone were an outsider, this probably looked like some cheesy romance movie that girls from his high school flocked to see with their significant other. And boy, did Thomas wish it was. He would like nothing more to kiss the smiling boy in front of him.

A half hour went by, Thomas listening intently as Newt poured his soul out into the music. Some of it Thomas recognizes before, as they were probably well-known classical pieces. Others were probably some Newt just had learn to love over his many years of playing. Newt even grabbed Thomas’s hand and moved his fingers along the keys so Thomas could play, but the brunette was too busy trying not to blush because of how close they were and that Newt was holding his hand.

After that, the two had a small lunch in the kitchen together. Nothing fancy. Everyone loves macaroni and cheese anyway. Since Thomas was done for the day, and apparently Newt was too, they decided to go for a walk on the grounds. The place was huge, and Thomas still hadn’t seen all of it. 

Newt brought him passed the library - Ava still said he wasn’t allowed access until his power was discovered - then to the tennis court, not to play though. Gally was there, who Thomas exchanged a couple of words with, but it was clear Gally still wasn’t fond of him. Truthfully, Thomas didn’t care.  Finally, Newt brought him to the roof of the main building. “Are we allowed up here?” Thomas asked.

“No, but don’t be a twat about it.” 

Thomas was about make a joke back but he was silenced by the view in front of him. From here, he could see Glade City in all its glory. The sky was like a canvas, filled with reds, pinks and oranges. Lights from the skyscrapers were illuminating in the distance. Even a couple of birds were seen flying by. It was so peaceful. “Wow.”

“Nice right?” Newt teased. “Alby and I come up here to meditate and stuff sometimes. I figured, maybe the training rooms and the gardens weren’t the proper place for you to focus on your power. Maybe seeing the sky, y’know, thinking about air? It might help,” Newt finished, nervousness laced in his voice.  “I know it sounds stupid - ”

“No, it doesn’t,” Thomas said, sincerely grateful Newt was his friend. Maybe a change of scenery would do him some good. Newt smiled, the slight tension he built up leaving his body. 

So Thomas moved closer to the edge of the rooftop, looking out into the distance. He took a few deep breaths, closed his eyes, and began to focus on his inner self. Ava suggested thinking that he were on a cloud in the sky, breathing in the cold refreshing air. 

_ Find it. _

_ Channel it. _

_ Focus on it.  _

He put his arms forward, in the position Ava had show him. 

_ Breathe. _

_ Focus.  _

He would be patient. He waited. And waited and waited.

Then he felt something strange in his hands. Something was circulating in his palm. He could feel it. Slowly, he moved his hands around, trying to see if he was doing it. There was only one way to tell. 

He opened his eyes and looked for something to blow the air at. Nothing was up here, except Newt. The blonde had gone to meditating on the other side of the roof during the time. Carefully, Thomas pointed his hands in the direction of the blonde and, using the motions he remembered from Ava, attempted to push the air towards him. “Newt, tell me if you feel this.”

Thomas could feel the air moving through his body, through his palms. He was doing it, he was definitely doing it!

“Feel what Tom-”

The blonde’s hair and clothes started to sway, and his face was one of surprise and amusement. “Tommy, did you just bend air?!”

“I...I think so!” Thomas cheered.

“Do it again!”

Thomas repeated the process over once again, and just like before, he had successfully done it. “Holy shit Newt! I did it! I found my power!”

“You did it Tommy!” 

The two ran towards each other and embraced one another, Thomas spun Newt around in the air, both of them laughing like idiots. “I’m so proud of you,” Newt said as Thomas began to put him down.

“I couldn’t have done it without you Newt.”

They still had their arms on one another. They were still wearing their goofy smiles. They were panting from laughing so hard. They’re faces were probably only a couple of inches apart. Thomas could feel Newt’s breath against his mouth. Everything about this moment was pure bliss, and a part of Thomas wished he could stay this way forever. 

“Let’s go tell everyone!” Newt said, pulling Thomas by the hand towards the door leading to the stairwell.

* * *

 

“No way!”

“About time!”

“Way to go greenie!”

Everyone back at the house was thrilled for him, and Thomas couldn’t be more grateful that these were his new friends. Sure, he had friends back home, but this was different. Here they all had something in common, something that made them different from the rest of the world. They would always have a special bond with each other. Thomas was just lucky that he got the most awesome ones as his friends.

“This calls for a celebration!” Minho yelled. “We’re going out to eat! Everyone be ready in ten minutes!”

Everyone hurried to their rooms to get ready, Teresa quickly hugging Thomas before going to hers, and Thomas was waiting for everyone to come back down. “Tommy?”

“Yeah Newt?” he replied, turning to face the blonde behind him.

“I actually have to get back,” Newt said in a low voice. 

“What? Do you really have to?” Thomas didn’t want Newt to leave, not now. This night was supposed to be perfect, and it would only be that way with Newt there.

“Yeah, I was supposed to be back a few minutes ago actually. But go out, have fun. I’ll see you tomorrow, yeah? Oh and could you tell Sonya to call me later?”

“Yeah,” Thomas said sadly, and slightly annoyed that Newt would be calling Sonya later and not him.

The two hugged once again, Thomas probably squeezing a bit tighter than he should have, but he didn’t want to let Newt go. “I’m proud of you Tommy,” Newt whispered.

“Thanks Newt.”

The blonde withdrew from their embrace and walked out the door. Thomas still went out to celebrate with others, but it was safe to say that he didn’t enjoy himself as much as he’d like to.

* * *

 

Ava was thrilled to hear the good news about Thomas. In fact, she allowed him to skip his classes for the day - he only had one anyway - so he could practice it more with her. They were now in one of the more secure rooms where abilities were tested in order not to harm anyone. There was no furniture, except for a chair, and only one window in which people could look in on. Other than that, it was just matted floors and walls.  The only two in the room were Thomas and Ava. Newt, Teresa, and Aris were on the other side, watching Thomas and here for moral support.

“Okay Thomas, do the same steps you did as last time,” Ava said. “Knock the chair over.”

And Thomas did with ease. Finding your ability to air bend was hard, but once you unlocked it, mastering it wasn’t too difficult compared to other powers. Ava said it’s possible to master it within a few months of constant training. 

“Well done Thomas. I’m very proud of your progress.”

“Thank you Ms. Paige,” Thomas said. “Does this mean I can go to the library now?”

“Starting next week, yes.”

A few more days was better than not at all. He’ll take it. “Okay thanks. How often do I train?”

“Every day Thomas. We’ll meet here everyday at the same time. The more you practice, the quicker you will master it. You can go now. Tomorrow, we will learn more techniques.”

“Okay, cool.”

* * *

 

Mary was finishing up cleaning the kitchen after dinner. Vince was resting on the sofa watching television while Chuck was finishing up his homework upstairs. It was a bit quieter with Thomas gone, now that Chuck didn’t have someone to create chaos with. Mary missed her son deeply, but she knew it wouldn’t be forever. 

The phone rang, and Mary walked over to answer it. “Hello?”

_ “Mary? It’s Ava.” _

Her heart dropped. That meant bad news. Mary had told Ava to get in touch with her if anything went wrong or if what her and Vince suspected was true. “What is it?”

_ “You were right about Thomas, Mary.” _

Of course they were. They’ve known since he was born, but they just didn’t want to believe it. Especially with the danger that comes with it. “How’s he been doing?”

_ “He fits in well with the others. As far as his powers, he’s unlocked airbending already. It’s only a matter of time before he figures it out. Would you like me to tell him?” _

“How soon do we have to tell him?”

_ “Within the next couple of months, but the sooner the better, before he starts to discover it on his own. He’ll freak out and it will only make things worse.” _

Mary sighed. “Okay, Vince and I will talk to about it. We should be the ones to tell him.” They probably should have told him a long time ago, but even then, she couldn’t tell him the whole truth. “Probably when we take him home for Thanksgiving. ”

_ “Good. I think that would be best. I’ll still keep his access to our resources locked as you asked and keep you updated on his progress.” _

Mary said goodbye, and hung up the phone. She walked over to Vince and he looked up when he heard her enter. “What is it?”

“Thomas. We’re going to have to tell him the truth. All of it.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> if you guys are disappointed by Thomas's power, don't be. it's more complex i assure you!!  
> heres a link to the song Newt was playing on the piano if you're interested! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ohQSPR0Z1zM  
> hope you enjoyed! see you guys in a week! :)


	5. Hurt

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> shorter chapter this week, sorry. but i still hope you enjoy it :)  
> also, im now on twitter if you guys are too! @curedbydeath

Happy wouldn’t even begin to describe of Thomas felt. All his life, he was told that he was special, that he had a gift. Yet, it never came. He always thought he was a failure, that he wasn’t good enough or unworthy of the gift. He would never come up to claim what was his. Now here he was, training everyday with Ava and learning multiple techniques and methods to master his airbending. Ava had also brought Alby in to aid in Thomas’s training, during sessions and during his free time. Alby and Ava kept reminding him that he needed constant focus and to always feel the air around him at all times. Feel it in his blood, in his veins, in his chest, in his hands. 

He knew he wasn’t going to master this in a couple of weeks, but it sure did feel that way. But he was reminded that there would probably be a few setbacks, as the first time he felt certain emotions like rage or despair, he wouldn’t be able to control his powers properly. Over time though, he would learn how to maintain constant control.

Today Alby would direct air towards him, and Thomas had to find a way to repel it back. Sounds simple enough, but Alby informed Thomas he wasn’t going to go easy on him. Essentially, the two were in a duel, but Alby wouldn’t seriously hurt him.

He was blasted into the wall a few times and once to the ceiling - that one hurt - but after twenty minutes or so of Alby’s relentless attacks, Thomas directed it back at the boy. But he didn’t expect Alby to send it right back, knocking Thomas off his feet again.

After an hour, Ava thinks Thomas had done good enough for the day and called the session to an end. “Another successful session. Well done Thomas,” Ava praised when they were finished.

“Thank you Ms. Paige. Can I go to the library now?” 

“Soon, Thomas. I assure you it won’t be much longer.”

Denied again. Disappointed but not unexpected. Thomas and Alby left, walking back to their house. They didn’t have anything else on today’s agenda, so they figured they would chill out together for a while. Thomas still didn’t know Alby as well as the others, so he figured he should try to make an effort to become better friends.

“Hey Newt!” Alby yelled.

Speak of the devil and he shall appear. Thomas turned his head and saw said blonde walking with Sonya a few feet ahead of them. Newt looked up, but his face fell when his eyes landed on Thomas. Something seemed different .“Oh..hey guys.”

“We were gonna hang out back at our house, you guys wanna come?” Alby asked.

“I have a class,” Sonya said. “I’ll stop by after.”

“Newt?” Thomas asked. “Can you come?”

Newt wasn’t looking at Thomas, which Thomas felt was odd. “Actually, I have to get back to my room. I’ll see you guys later,” he said turning to walk away. Sonya said goodbye and followed after him.

“What the hell was that?” Thomas asked. Newt practically gave him the cold shoulder. He wouldn’t look at him and he barely even spoke to him. He was literally smiling with Sonya and the minute he saw Thomas, he froze up. 

“What?”

“What do you mean what?” Thomas asked exasperated. “He completely ignored me.”

“I think you’re reading a too much into it greenbean,” Alby said and started walking again.

“I mean, I get he likes Sonya, she’s pretty and all and I don’t care if they’re dating but don’t just ignore me because your girlfriend is there.”

“What did you just say?” Alby chuckled.

“What?”

“Did you say girlfriend?

“Yes.” Why, what else would she be? Friends with benefits? Oh, God. Thomas did  _ not  _ want to think about Newt having sex with someone.

“Dude,” Alby stared at Thomas like he was an idiot. “Sonya is his shuckin’ sister.”

Thomas eyes went wide. Sister. So Newt doesn’t have a crush on her and isn’t dating her?! “Are you serious?”

“They have the same hair color, the same eyes, the same accent,” Alby stated. “Jeez, Teresa told us you were a bit slow but I didn’t think you were  _ that  _ slow.”

“Oh, shut up.”

“So...were you just jealous of them?”

“What?!” Jealous? Of Newt and Sonya? No way! Not at all! And if he was, he sure as hell wasn’t going to admit it. That would just be pathetic.

Which Thomas knows he is.

“Cute,” Alby mused and walked away.

* * *

 

Today was Teresa’s off day, and she had intended to spend it catching up on her readings in her room. She was sore from the defense and combat classes she was taking, as all students were required to know some form of self defense, especially those with gifts that wouldn’t aid in a fight like bending. Luckily, Brenda wouldn’t be back for a couple of hours - not that she minded the girl, but if she were here, she would coax her to hang out - leaving Teresa in peace.

Or so she thought.

He was just coming up the stairs, but Teresa could hear his thoughts loud and clear. Aris was coming to talk to her and he was freaking out in his head. God, he was cute. She waited to move until he knocked on her door. “Come in.”

Aris slowly opened the door and said hello. Teresa offered him a seat and he sat at the edge of her bed. “What’s up?” she asked.

“I, uh...I was thinking...well I was wondering if…”

She could read his mind, she knew where he was going with this. But she just smiled and waited for him to ask her. It was adorable to see him panic.

“Would you want to go out? Not like a date! But it would just be us. Unless that’s weird? It’s okay if you don’t want to, it’s just you’re really pretty and nice and awesome-”

“Aris.”

“Yeah?”

“That sounds wonderful.”

The boy’s nervous expression soon became a soft smile. “Okay. Great. Uh, how about lunch tomorrow?”

“Sounds perfect,” she smiled.

When he left the room, she could hear him cheering in his head. She couldn’t help but laugh.

* * *

 

Thomas received a text from Brenda saying to meet at the cafeteria for some lunch. He had planned on going to the gym, but he supposes that he could always go later on. It wasn’t like he had a busy day or anything. 

He got to the cafeteria and saw his friends in their usual spot. Brenda, Minho, Harriet.

And Newt.

After grabbing some food quickly, he made his way over to the table and sat down. He immediately felt the tension between him in the blonde. To make matters worse, when he looked at Newt, he turned his attention away from Thomas. It was obvious he had a problem with him.

“So Thomas, how’s your training going?” Harriet asked.

“It’s pretty good. Alby is tough on me, which I prefer.”

“So you’re saying you like it rough?” Minho teased, earning a smack from Brenda.

“I’ll see you guys later,” Newt said, picking up his tray and going to leave. 

Okay, what the actual hell. Thomas can’t imagine he did anything wrong. The past few weeks with Newt have been great. Then all of a sudden Newt doesn’t like him? Something isn’t adding up.

Thomas followed Newt out of the cafeteria and caught up with him outside the building. “Newt!” he called.

The blonde froze in his tracks and reluctantly turned around. He didn’t say anything, so Thomas took that as his cue to continue speaking. “Did I do something wrong?”   
“Huh?”

“You’re avoiding me,” Thomas said. “You’re trying to avoid me and I don’t know why. Did I do something wrong? Do you not like me or something?”

Thomas was trying to hide the hurt in his voice, but he wasn’t doing a good job. He couldn’t help it. He felt this bond with Newt that he didn’t even have with Teresa. To have Newt not care about him hurt like hell.

“Tommy, no. You didn’t do anything wrong,” Newt soothed. “It’s...it’s me.”

“What do you mean?”

Newt looked like he was trying to find words to say, but every time he opened up his mouth, he came up empty. So Thomas took the initiative. “Newt, if you think you did something wrong, you didn't. If I made you feel like - ”

“Thomas, stop. It isn’t you. Just..." the blonde sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "I gotta go, I’m sorry.”

The brunette watched the blonde walked away until he was completely out of sight.

Thomas was so confused. Newt was really weird. Guess that comes with weird powers?

But they were literally perfect together! Every time he hung out with Newt, it was like they had known each other their whole lives. They were constantly laughing and having a good time. Newt even pushed Thomas harder to work on his powers, so that’s proof that he did care. Then what was it?   
  


Oh no.

 

Newt knew. Newt knew Thomas liked him! Gosh, was he so obvious?! How stupid could be he? He totally freaked Newt out! That’s why he didn’t want to be around him. He groaned at the realization and mentally smacked himself on the face.

“You okay there?” Minho said, suddenly appearing behind Thomas.

“I don't know honestly,” he mumbled.

“Look, Newt’s been through a lot. Everyone here has been through shit,” Minho said. “Take me for example. I almost set my room on fire and burned my mom when I got my power. It’s hard to get the idea of hurting someone you care about out of your head. Newt’s past prevents him from getting close to people. It took me a year to get through to him. Don’t hold it against him. He’s been through more than you know.”

Then Minho turned to walk back to the cafeteria. “Just give him some time,” he said as he left.

So Newt was avoiding Thomas not because he didn’t like him, but because he did? Is that what Minho meant? On no planet does that even make sense.

Thomas sighed and just went home. He didn’t want to eat or hang out with anyone right now.

Suddenly, he wasn’t happy anymore. Now he felt hurt.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thanks for reading :)


	6. Illusions

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i almost forgot to update tbh.  
> anyways, we got some Minho, Newt's backstory, some newtmas, and some Chuck! (because I hate that I underused him - and Gally :/ - in this story so I gave him another cameo)  
> also, we've got lots of dialogue this chapter, sorry about that. enjoy! :)

“Would you just  _ shut up  _ already?!”

The look of hurt that flashed across the greenie’s face was enough to immediately bring on the feeling of guilt. Minho hadn’t planned on snapping like that, but Thomas had been so annoying lately. Every five seconds he heard “Newt still hasn’t talked to me” or “Why do you think he hates me?” or something stupid along those lines. And Minho was fine telling Thomas to just wait and let Newt come to him, but he had enough. He’s actually surprised he didn’t try to scorch Thomas yet, although he came pretty close to doing so.

“I’m sorry,” the Asian apologized. “I didn’t mean to snap.”

“It’s fine,” the brunette mumbled and walked out of their shared room.

Minho sighed and collapsed onto his bed, rubbing his eyes and groaning. 

“What was that about?”

He barely turned his head to see Teresa standing in the doorway frowning. “I heard you snap at him.”

“Aren’t you a mind reader? You shouldn’t even have to ask me what it was about.”

“I know, but I figured it was the polite thing to do. He’s still being sad and annoying?”

“Yep,” Minho said as he rose off his bed and walked out of the room past Teresa. “But I’m gonna go fix that.”

* * *

 

“Okay, time to knock the shit off.”

Minho stormed into Alby’s room where he and Newt had been talking. Alby raised an eyebrow at his friends intrusion, while Newt barely flinched. Minho was known for barging in to rooms.

“What shit?” Alby asked.

“Not you, him,” Minho said pointing at Newt.

“Me? Why?”

“I’m tired of hearing Thomas mope about how you’re avoiding him and how you’re mad at him and blah blah blah. Just kiss and make up, would ya?”

It wasn’t fair for Thomas that Minho snapped at him. But Thomas was annoying, and that was because of Newt, so if it’s anyone’s fault, it’s Newt’s. 

“Min, please. It’s hard enough as it is,” Newt pleaded.

“It actually isn’t,” Alby chimed in.

“Thank you!” Minho exclaimed. It was two against one. If Alby had Minho’s back, he was sure Newt would cave in. “It’s not like you can avoid him forever. We see him like all the time. Trying to avoid him is like using a broken pencil.”

Alby and Newt just looked at the Asian in silence, frowns of confusion plastered on their faces. “It’s pointless,” Minho explained.

“Just listen to him Newt,” Alby said. “I’m tired of hearing his stupid puns.”

“Alright! Would it make everybody bloody happy if I stopped avoiding Thomas?” Newt complained.

“Yeah!” the two said in unison.

* * *

 

Newt grumbled out of Alby’s room on his way to Thomas’s. He was angry at Minho and Alby for making him do this. It’s bad enough he had to deal with Sonya’s scolding the other day, now Minho on top of that? Newt didn’t hate Thomas at all. In fact, it was just the opposite. Newt started avoiding the brunette once he realized how much he actually liked him. It was better for him to just cut ties with him immediately. He didn’t mean to hurt Thomas.

But he also knew a part of him wouldn’t be able to avoid Thomas forever. Something was different with him, and it was unsettling yet comforting. A force pulling him towards the brunette without any indication why. It was like they were soulmates or something. That was the closest guess Newt had, even though soulmates don’t exist. Or maybe they do and this is what it feels like.

When he got to Thomas and Minho’s room, he found it empty. He checked the rest of the house and Thomas was nowhere to be seen. He wasn’t in class, as Newt knew his schedule - it sounds pretty pathetic when Newt thinks about that - so then where was he?

He asked Teresa where he had gone, but she didn’t know either. She suggested he likes to take walks to clear his head so he was probably just walking around the campus.

 

To clear his head.

 

Newt knew where he was. 

 

He mad his way there at a brisk pace, his thoughts in his head moving faster than him. The whole way there he was trying to rehearse what he was going to say, but everything he could come up with sounded stupid. He didn’t even realize how close he was getting to Thomas until he saw him, sitting against a tree in the gardens.

And Thomas saw him as well.

“Newt?” Thomas seemed so shocked to see him. Thomas must really think he hates him.

“Hey Tommy,” Newt said softly, slowly making his way over to the boy. 

“I can leave if you want,” Thomas said sadly. That hurt look in his eyes left a pain in Newt’s chest. Thomas must really feel awful about this whole thing.

“That’s not what I want,” Newt said as he sat down next to the brunette.

“You sure? Because it seems like you want nothing to do with me.”

“That’s the opposite of what I want,” Newt admitted. “I like you Tommy, I really do. It’s just…”

There was no way to explain this without telling the story. And normally, Newt would just forget about the person and move on rather than tell it, but for some reason, he didn’t want to forget Thomas. He wanted to tell him the truth and hope that he could forgive him for pushing him away. 

“I was scared of getting too close to you. To be honest, I didn’t want any friends when I first came here.”

“Why?”

“My powers...I didn’t know what abilities came with them, so when I first discovered them, I began to research and test them out. According to some book I found, I could put thoughts and visions in people’s heads, making them see something happy, something beautiful...or something dark.”

Newt stiffened. He hated telling this story, but he knew it needed to be done. He relaxed a bit when Thomas put a comforting hand on his leg. “When I was fourteen, I tested that theory. I went to my parents and I wanted them to experience their best memory. I wanted to know it for myself as well. But...I messed up. Big time.

“Instead of their happiest memory, I made them see their darkest fears. I had to watch it, I had to watch them suffer through it. Over and over again. Both of them had mental breakdowns from their visions.”

Newt didn’t realize he was crying until his vision blurred, causing him to blink and tears fell from his eyes. He didn’t feel himself shaking until Thomas wrapped an around his shoulder and pulled him closer to the brunette. 

With a deep breath, he continued. “They went to an institution after that, and they haven’t been the same since. They might never recover. But that’s not all.

“Right after I did it, I was so upset that I lost control of my powers and almost destroyed our entire block. Sonya can make people’s powers stronger or weaker, so with her around and not knowing how to use her powers, I caused a lot of damage. I could have killed my family, my neighbors, anyone near me. That’s how Ava found me and Sonya. She told us there was a place for us if we would like. It’d be like school, but we could also learn about our powers and how to control them. So we came here. I didn’t want to make any friends because I was afraid I might hurt them.

“So I just stayed in my room, went to class, and practiced my powers. I didn’t talk to anyone unless I had to. Not even Sonya. But Ava saw me isolating myself, so she gave me these,” Newt gestured to the braces. “She said as long as I wear them, I wouldn’t be able to use my powers. I put it on in a heartbeat.”

Newt looked over at Thomas to try and read his expression. He was sure Thomas would think he’s some kind of monster for destroying his parents’ minds and almost killing your neighbors. But there wasn’t. There was no anger or pity or disgust. It was a face of understanding.

“So...you pushed me away because you thought I’d get hurt?”

That was part of the truth. The other part...Newt wasn’t ready to admit just yet. He didn’t want to be around Thomas because he was starting to fall for the boy, and he was afraid of how he would react. “Yeah,” Newt half lied. 

“That’s stupid,” Thomas said. It wasn’t accusing or filled with malice, although it seemed somewhat fierce. “Any one of us could accidently hurt each other because of our powers Newt. I could have blown you off the building the first time I airbended!” 

Thomas did have a point. But Newt couldn’t live with himself if he hurt someone he cared about again. Sure, he had his powers under control now, but they always seemed to grow and manifest. Every few months, he discovered something new about them. He was an unpredictable time bomb waiting to go off, and he just wanted to lessen the damage he would bring when he explodes.

“Newt, I know you. You would never hurt anyone intentionally. While I’m happy to hear that you care about me, I don’t want you to live in fear that you’re going to lose control. These are  _ your  _ powers.  _ You  _ control them, not the other way around. I know you can handle them.”

If Newt was trying to get over his little crush on Tommy, that speech just made it impossible. Thomas wasn’t judgemental, he was understanding. He was sweet and caring, and he wanted to help someone whenever he could. Did he have to literally be perfect?   
“Thank you Tommy.”

“Just don’t ignore me again,” Thomas said.

“I couldn’t if I wanted to. Something won’t let me.”

“What?”

Here comes the weird part. “Okay, don’t freak out when I say this, because it’s going to sound bizarre. But since we met, I feel...something. It’s calling me to you and to be frank, it’s bloody annoying.”

“You feel it too?”

Newt turned his attention to his side to come face to face with Thomas. He was pretty sure he was mirroring the brunette’s shocked expression. “Yeah, it’s like...a string is pulling me towards you. This is gonna sound bloody crazy, but even when I’m not with you, I feel you. Like you’re right there.”

Thomas hummed in agreement, his eyes quickly gazing downwards but quickly back up to Newt’s. Those hazel honey colored eyes that Newt was pretty sure he would drown in if he didn’t look away, but he couldn’t. 

They were barely a centimeter apart, their noses close to brushing, but Newt didn’t back away. He couldn’t. And the fact that Thomas admitted he felt something weird between them as well brought some relief to him, realizing that he wasn’t going crazy. Or maybe the both of them were. But going crazy with Thomas didn’t sound so bad. 

“Maybe we’re in love,” Thomas teased.

And the two broke out in laughter that broke the tense moment they had just shared. Once they had calmed down, Newt realized that Thomas’s arm was still around him, and he didn’t make any move to let go. So Newt moved in closer to the embrace. He basked in the warmth of Thomas, listening to the wind blow and birds chirping as the sun lit up the gardens in the most gorgeous way. He wished he could live in this moment forever.

* * *

 

Chuck was giddy with excitement as he was walking through the museum. He spent weeks getting excited over this trip. It was almost a three hour bus ride, but it was totally worth it. The museum was dedicated to the history of powered people. He thinks that one day his name will be somewhere in here, and kids just like him will be in awe of how cool he would be once he got his powers.

Every kid in the seventh grade got to attend this field trip. Since they were about to start puberty, it seemed appropriate to introduce into the world of supers. Most kids on this trip would never have powers, but Chuck knew since both of his parents were, it was almost a given. Besides him, Thomas and Teresa were the only other people in their school who were on this trip that had superpowers. Chuck thought that that was pretty cool. He and Thomas were like a dynamic duo, two unstoppable brothers. 

“And here we have a replica of the Exemplar Amulet,” the tour guide spoke with such enthusiasm. “Inside the amulet is a total of five gems. There is one for each element, and in the center of the amulet there is supposed to be a fifth gem, which is the Infinity gem. The Exemplars are supposed to wear the amulet once they have mastered all four elements. I think the gem allows them to enter the Exemplar State. Don’t ask me about that because I have yet to understand it!” she joked. “We haven’t had an Exemplar in a while, so we are all eager for the next one to reveal his or her self!”

Awesome! What if that was Chuck’s power? Imagine he was the Exemplar everyone was waiting for! It’d be wicked!   
“What happened to the last Exemplar?” a student asked.

“Unfortunately, he was killed trying to save the world,” the guide said solemnly. 

“How do you know who the next one is?” another student asked.

“We don’t,” the guide answered. “But when one Exemplar dies, the next one is born. So the next Exemplar is probably around, just not sure of their abilities. I have faith that they will be revealed soon enough. Now, moving on!”

Next she took them to look at pictures of previous Exemplars, but Chuck found himself staring at the amulet replica. Each gem was the color of the elements - the water was blue, the earth was green, the fire was red, and the air was white - and in the middle was the crystal clear Infinity gem. Chuck couldn’t help but watch in awe and wondered what it would be like to hold so much power.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i feel unoriginal stealing "infinity" from marvel, but honestly, every other name i had sucked compared to it.  
> i might not be able to update next weekend, but im gonna try my best!  
> thanks again for reading, you're all wonderful :)


	7. Hypnotica

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i am SO sorry i couldnt update last week!!! but to make up for it, i've edited this chapter and left a little gift for you all :) although the moment wont last long...

Things seemed to be back to normal. Thomas went to practice his powers in the morning with Alby - Ava wasn’t there everyday anymore since Thomas seemed to be mastering the ability awfully quick - then he would meet up with his friends for lunch in the cafeteria - why bother making food at the house when there’s food already made there? - and Newt wasn’t ignoring him anymore. In fact, they seemed to hang out a lot more now whenever they had free time. Thomas was glad. He had missed Newt so much, and it felt so good to have him back. It was like nothing had even happened.

“Smile any harder and you’ll break your face.”

Thomas looked up from his bed to see Teresa standing in the doorway. “Hey, when did you get back?”

“Not too long ago,” she said as she moved to sit down across from him on the other end of his bed. “I heard you as soon as I stepped inside the house.”

“You’re really annoying with that, you know.”

“How do you think I feel hearing other people’s thoughts all the time? I can barely think my own!”

Thomas never thought of it like that. Come to think of it, he hasn’t really had a decent conversation with Teresa in a while. Has he asked her how _her_ training was going lately? He can’t remember. “So, how’s your training been going? Have any new powers yet?”

She didn’t say anything. She just smiled mischievously for a moment before closing her eyes and scrunching her face, like she was trying to focus.

_“Yes I do.”_

Thomas nearly fell off of the bed when he heard her voice in his head. “What the hell? Teresa, was that you?”

“Yep,” she smiled proudly. “I can send messages to other people’s heads! It’s so cool!”

That actually is pretty cool. While Thomas is glad he’s found his power after coming here, he was a little bit jealous of Teresa’s. It seems like hers could evolve into so many other things. She can read minds, send messages to other people’s minds. Maybe she could mind control someone someday.

“Hey, actually I have to ask you something,” Teresa said. “Brenda said that she and the other kids are having a party for Halloween tonight. No costumes since it was last minute. Would you want to go?”

That’s right, Halloween was tomorrow. But he and Newt had already made plans! He didn’t want to cancel them. Maybe he could convince Newt to go? “I’ll think about it.”

“I know you’re not the smartest Tom, but I heard you wondering about Newt,” Teresa mused. “What’s going on there anyway? Making any progress?”

If Thomas only knew how to get somewhere with Newt. There were the smallest of moments when he thought it possible that Newt could feel the same way. Lingering touches and longing looks when they would have to depart from each other’s company. The way the blonde laughed at Thomas’s bad jokes and the way Newt smiled at him. Thomas could almost believe that Newt liked him back.

But he wouldn’t do that to himself. He didn’t want to have false hope. He’ll just have to accept the fact that he and Newt are friends and that is all they will ever be. Which is fine with Thomas. He would rather be best friends with Newt than nothing at all. As long as he had Newt, he would be okay.

“I think it’s best if we just stay friends,” Thomas said.

“You’re lying. You know that’s not what you want.”

“All I want is him in my life, T. That’s all I need. I can live with the fact that were just friends,” Thomas admitted. It hurt a bit to say it, but he had to face reality.

Teresa sighed and put a hand on his shoulder. They both knew nothing she would say would change how Thomas felt, so she let it go.

After she had left the room, Thomas texted Newt asking him if he would want to go to the Halloween party tonight. He got the feeling Newt wasn’t really a social person, since whenever the group went out off the school grounds, he would decline. Thomas also wondered if it had to do with Newt not wanting to hurt anyone. Thomas made a mental note to ask Newt about that sometime.

Luckily, Newt replied saying he would love to go to the party. Okay, so he would still see Newt and get to hang out with his friends. Everybody’s happy.

* * *

 

Thomas had only been in the more secure building once before, but he still didn’t like the feeling of it. Other than Newt, there were only another two kids that resided in the building. Thomas had yet to meet them, but they probably just wanted to be left alone like Newt did.

Although there was security on campus, these guards felt more intimidating. It’s almost as if this were a prison. Newt didn’t belong here.

“Hey Tommy,” Newt said as he met Thomas halfway down the hall. “Ready to go?”

“Yeah, sure.” Thomas couldn’t help but eye the guards on his way out. He didn’t fail to notice the guns they had holstered to their body. Thomas didn’t like this one bit.

“They’re only stun guns,” Newt assured him. “And since I’ve been here, they’ve never been used.”

That’s good at least. But still, it didn’t seem right.

The walk to the party was a quiet one, but it was a comfortable silence. Just being with Newt was enough for Thomas. They didn’t have to talk for him to feel good.

It wasn’t like talking to Newt was the highlight of his day. Seeing Newt smile didn’t make him feel warm and fuzzy inside. His laugh wasn’t one of the most precious sounds Thomas had ever heard. He didn’t want to hold Newt’s hand. He didn’t feel the urge to kiss the blonde when they would be standing so close to one another. Not at all.

Thank God Teresa wasn’t near enough to hear his thoughts, because all of that was a lie and she would probably make fun of him for it.

When they arrived at the party, which the only people Thomas knew who lived here were Frypan and Winston, Thomas could already tell it was going to be pretty awesome. Even though they didn’t have to wear costumes, the house was still adorned with Halloween decorations. The speakers were playing some upbeat electronic pop songs, and he saw lights flickering inside the house like it was a dancefloor.

They found Minho and Brenda first, who were dancing with each other in the living room, drinks in hand. Thomas just realized that he didn’t know if alcohol would affect his powers or not. If they would, he didn’t want to drink. God forbid he created a tornado in the middle of the kitchen at some point in the night. He also noticed more than one Frypan walking around being a good host. Thomas doesn’t ever think he’ll get used to seeing multiple versions of a person.

Not being ones to dance, the two found themselves in the corner of the living room with Teresa and Aris, who were...holding hands?

“Hey guys,” Newt said as they sat down.

“Newt! Thomas!” Aris greeted.

Thomas couldn’t hide the shocked look on his face. And apparently, Teresa noticed it as well.

She gave him a wink, and he smiled at her. _“Yeah yeah,”_ she said in his head. _“You can tease me about this tomorrow, just enjoy the party loverboy.”_

Oh, he definitely was going to tease her tomorrow.

“You guys want a drink?”  One of the Frypans offered, coming from out of nowhere. “And Thomas, if I were you, I’d only have two at most. Once you get your powers under control, you can have more, but none of us ever take that chance anyway.”

“Uh, yeah I’ll have a beer.”

Frypan nodded and turned to the blonde. “Newt?”

“I probably shouldn’t…”

“Why not? You got your braces on. You’ll be fine.”

Newt sighed. He was definitely reluctant about drinking. But Frypan was right, if his braces were on, Newt deserved to let loose a little bit.

“Fine, fine.”

Aris agreed as well. Frypan left and returned with three beers in hand, one for each of the guys. Thomas took a sip and to be honest, he never liked the taste of beer that much. But it wasn’t much alcohol so he’d be fine.

Or so he thought.

* * *

 

Two hours and four beers later, he was pretty tipsy. He felt all warm and fuzzy inside. He felt as light as air - no pun intended to his power. Thomas had always been a lightweight, and never takes that into consideration when he’s at a party. Newt seemed to be a lightweight as well - of course he is, he’s such a twig - as he was actually dancing with Sonya, Harriet, Brenda, Minho, and a few other kids.

The makeshift dance floor in the living room was completed with strobe lights hanging from above, changing colors every few seconds flashing like crazy. No matter what color it changed to - blue, purple, yellow - Newt looked gorgeous. It’s taking all of Thomas’s willpower not to go over there and just kiss him.

The lights on the dancefloor now dimmed to different soft shades of blues and purples. Everyone’s face and bodies were being illuminated by the fluorescence, everyone dancing - or in some cases grinding - and the one person Thomas couldn't tear his eyes away from was no exception. Newt had him hypnotized: moving in a slower rhythm to accompany the leisure tempo of the song, dancing with some tall brown haired kid. Nick, Thomas thinks.

“You should dance with him,” Teresa said appearing from out of nowhere. “I know you want to.”

He wants to, but he can’t dance. Literally can’t dance. He would just make a fool of himself in front of the boy he likes. He wanted Newt to like him, not look at him like he’s an idiot.

Sensing his hesitation, Teresa gave him a nudge. “Trust me, Tom. He doesn’t want to dance with Nick. Go. You’ll have fun.”

Thomas noticed the smirk she had on her face and he didn’t like it one bit. She knew something that he didn’t. “What are you hiding?”

“Let’s just say that when Newt drinks,” she said stepping closer to him, “he doesn’t block me from reading his mind.”

She offered him a wink and left him standing there. What the hell does that mean? She could read Newt’s mind, good for her. What does that have to do with -

Wait.

She read Newt’s mind. And she told Thomas to dance with him. Does that mean…

No. Thomas will not get his hopes up. But if there’s even a chance…

Screw it.

He sauntered over to the blonde, who was still dancing with Nick, and before he could even say anything, Newt noticed him approaching. The blonde sent a smile in the brunette’s direction. A lazy, drunk smile. Their eyes never tore away from one another as Thomas was walking over.

Thomas put on the fiercest face he could muster up and basically told Nick to go fuck himself, which he did.

Thomas brought his gaze back to Newt. The way Newt was staring at him...there was something there. A wanting. He could see it in his tipsy expression.

Newt, not breaking eye contact, made a step closer to Thomas, the brunette doing the same, until their bodies were almost touching. Thomas, without thinking, reached out and his hands on Newt’s waist, pulling him closer. Newt didn’t seem to mind being pressed up against his body. In fact, he wrapped his arms Thomas’s neck. Their foreheads were almost touching, eyes never tearing away from one another, and Thomas could feel the heat of Newt’s breath against his face.

He didn’t know what he was doing anymore. He wasn’t thinking, he was feeling, doing whatever that felt right. And everything in this moment felt right. That’s why when he closed his eyes and started leaning in to kiss Newt, he didn’t have an internal freak out, because it felt right.

As soon as their lips met, Thomas was lost in it. It was slow and soft, like they were both nervous and not really sure it was happening, but also basking in the feeling of it. The way their lips were moving in sync with each other told Thomas that this was right, that this was meant to be. If he was asked to define heaven, this would be his answer.

 

But heaven doesn’t last forever.

A scream was heard over the music, and they immediately broke away to look in the direction, and Newt sprinted off towards it. Thomas was right on his heels, both trying to push their way through the intoxicated crowd.

* * *

 

The blonde girl just finished grabbing herself another drink after dancing for a good twenty minutes or so. Sonya doesn’t know how Minho can keep going without stopping, but evidently he has good stamina.

She started to make her way back through the crowd to her friends, taking a sip from her drink, but she froze in between the dancing bodies. The music seemed to fade but she could still hear it. Everything became blurry, fuzzy. The lights were making it even more difficult to see. She felt a shiver run through her body causing her to drop her beverage. She trembled and wrapped her arms around herself. Not because she was cold.

No. Because she was terrified.

Paranoia and panic overcame her. She started looking around the room, spinning in circles as she could hear a sinister laugh surrounding her. It was maniacal, like the devil had just conquered the world. She pushed through the crowd to find Harriet or Aris or someone, but the sea of bodies was too thick to navigate.

A man with a deformed face appeared in front of her, lacking a nose and his right side of his face completely covered in grotesque scars and he almost didn’t look human. She panicked and turned around, running through the crowd to be met with the man with the nefarious laugh she was hearing. A rat-looking man who made her feel something much worse than fear.

A man she had definitely seen before.

She scrambled away from him to be met with her brother.

But it wasn’t Newt.

This version of him had eyes void of color, sickly purple veins all across his face. His hair was in disarray as if he was pulling at it and black ooze was dripping out of his mouth. And he let out the most animalistic growl that she had ever heard. The girl screamed in terror and fell onto her back, the dancing bodies around her not even registering her presence.

A whirring, metallic clicking sound filled her ears. When she rolled over and raised her head, she could see a large, bulbous slimy creature. It was like a parasite on the world’s biggest metal stilts. And at its end was a long metal tail with something that looked like a claw.

But she didn’t have it in her to scream again. She felt the darkness coming. She slowly let her head fall to the floor as her eyes fell back into her head, barely registering someone kneeling next to her and calling her name.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so twist, Sonya was the one who had a vision from scorch trials instead of Thomas (which is fair, because that's her power) that scene was always one of my favorites, so i really wanted to put it in here.  
> and if anyone is confused by the ending, this was sonya's first time having a vision while awake, so she was clearly terrified.  
> hope it was good??? this was one of like five chapters that were extremely difficult to write idk why.  
> thanks again for reading! :)


	8. Enigmatic Soul

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so i forgot that with changing the last chapter, it would affect the rest of the story. hence a slightly late update because i had to make changes (and will have to continue to do so in the next few chapters :/ but the kiss was worth it tbh)  
> this is basically a fluffy chapter because they all deserve some fun and happiness before trouble comes, which it will.

“You sure we won’t get in trouble?”

“What are they gonna do, send us to bloody prison? Relax Tommy.”

Thomas got tired of Ava’s excuses not allowing him into the library. After confiding in Newt about this, Newt said that he would take Thomas with him and Minho would be a distraction. Simple enough. It really bothered him that Ava still didn’t grant him permission to come.

Speaking of things bothering Thomas, it had been two weeks since the Halloween party. It had been two weeks since he kissed Newt, and neither of them spoke about it after that night. Every time Thomas tried to, the words died in his throat. And Newt never brought it up either. But things weren’t awkward for them. In fact, they seemed better than ever. So...were they dating now? Thomas was never going to get the answer since he will never have the courage to ask. He knows friends sometimes kiss when they get drunk - he would know, he kissed his friend Lydia during his junior year - but it didn’t feel like friends kissing with Newt. Or maybe Thomas was interpreting this all wrong? These thoughts have been on Thomas’s mind non-stop since that night. Newt was so hard to read sometimes.

Apparently it was a family trait because Sonya, who was perfectly fine since her incident, refused to speak about what happened with anyone. Not Harriet or Newt, not even Ava when she questioned the girl. She dismissed it and apologized for scaring everyone, but Thomas and the others definitely know she’s lying. But Teresa told everyone not to push it and let her be. She’ll talk when she’s ready.

Now they were walking towards the library and Thomas was actually excited to be learning about history - which is weird, because he hated it in highschool. Maybe it was the fact that this felt like they were top agents on a secret mission. At least, that’s what Minho said.

They walked through the front door and into the building. Thomas was in awe. There were three floors by the looks of it and the amount of shelves were endless. It’s like every single book that exists in the world were here at this library. Considering there was some schooling here, he figures that’s why.

The woman at the front desk looked up at them when they entered, but Thomas’s face was perfectly hidden behind Newt. Minho made his way over to the woman and began speaking with her. In Minho’s words, he would “use his charms and beautiful physique” to buy them the time to sneak past them. Thomas and Newt kept their steps in sync as to avoid being seen, and when they made it close enough, Newt pulled Thomas into a row of books, slamming the pair against it.

“You think she’s gonna search for us?” Thomas asked from behind the bookshelf where they hid. He tried not to think about the fact that he and Newt were pressed close to one another, just like the night they kissed.

“Nah,” Newt said, his hot breath brushing against Thomas’s neck. “We’ll be fine. Come on, the stuff we need is upstairs.”

Newt pushed off of him and started walking up the nearby staircase, Thomas following behind. It didn’t take Newt long to find the section they were looking for. “Okay, there’s only a few books I think,” Newt said while scanning the shelf, taking out the small USB they brought with them from his pocket. “And then we can download whatever files we need from the archives onto the here.”

“Okay, should we just take them all?”

“Why not,” Newt shrugged.

Fifteen minutes after searching and downloading, they had everything they had needed. But Thomas realized the flaw in this scheme: no extraction plan. “Uh, Newt? “We can’t just walk out of here. We’ll get caught.”

“Who said we were walking out of here?” Newt smirked and started walking away.

Thomas was confused but followed Newt nonetheless. The blonde was leading them upstairs towards the back of the third floor. Along the way, something caught the corner of Thomas’s eye. He turned right to see a podium with a glass case, and inside it seemed to be a crest or a amulet or something. His instincts told him to walk over to it and take a closer peak. In the center of the small object was the element symbols engraved in it, and a fifth circular symbol he didn’t recognize. Thomas placed a hand over the glass encasing, and when he did, the symbols began to glow.

“What  are you doing?”

Thomas turned around to see Newt approaching. “It took me thirty seconds to realize you weren’t buggin’ following me.”

“Sorry, I just…” he trailed off. Thomas turned around once again to look at it, but it had stopped glowing. Maybe it never was at all. “What is this?” he asked Newt.

Newt took a step over to him to examine the artifact. “I’m not sure, but I’m sure you figure it out in the stuff we stole, now come on.”

Thomas reluctantly followed Newt once again, the blonde leading him to a quiet corner in the library. After making sure no one was looking, Newt called Harriet’s name. Thomas looked around, but he didn’t see the girl anywhere. Why was Newt -

A whoosh of air sounded in his ears. A purple portal - if that’s what it was - began to open up and Harriet appeared out of thin air. Right. She could teleport. “You guys ready?” she asked.

Newt nodded. Harriet grabbed onto his arm and Newt grabbed Thomas’s hand, which he tried not to freak out about. In the blink of an eye, he saw purple lights blinding him and the next thing Thomas knew he was back in the living room of their house. “Woah.” He just teleported for the first time!

“Thanks again, Harriet,” Newt smiled, and the dark haired girl left the boys alone.

“How did she know where we were?”

“If you ever need her, just keep calling her name. She can sense you, and she’ll teleport right to you and take you wherever you need,” Newt said, placing the books down on the coffee table. “Just don’t abuse it like Minho. He called her at three in the morning as if he was dying just so she could take him to get ice cream.”

Thomas laughed at that. He hadn’t known Minho as long as Newt, but it seemed typical of Minho to do such a thing. “Now come on,” Newt continued. “We have to get ready. We promised that shank we would go to the game.”

Thomas completely forgot. The Gladers - Glade City’s high school football team - were having their championship game tonight. Even though they weren’t in the school, Minho insisted it would be fun to go. Brenda, Teresa, and the others seemed excited about the idea, and Thomas didn’t mind either. But he wasn’t going to go unless Newt did. He figured if he guilted the blonde, it would make him go. Which it did.

He was finally going to hang out with Newt outside the school for the first time. He was thrilled just thinking about it, but he was also upset that it wouldn't be something special. Not like a date or anything. He definitely wasn’t thinking of asking Newt out on a date, despite what Teresa says.

* * *

 

Thomas was never really into football that much, but he would be lying if he said he wasn't having a great time. Their group found a spot at the top of the bleachers where they could overlook the entire field. It was a bit cooler now that it was mid-November, so they were all wearing hoodies and beanies and cuddling up next to someone.Thomas wasn’t complaining, it gave him an excuse to get as close to Newt as possible.

It was the final quarter of the game, with less than two minutes left. The Gladers were down by three points. All they needed was a touchdown to win the game. This left everyone in the stands on edge, cheering louder than ever - Minho especially. Which left everybody laughing at him.

“He doesn’t even go here, why is he so bloody excited?” Newt said through his laughter.

“It’s nice to watch him be so into it,” Thomas said.

“Yeah…” Newt trailed off. His eyes seemed to wander a bit, looking off into the distance. Thomas could tell he wasn’t staring at anything in particular, but rather he was lost in his thoughts. “You okay?” Thomas nudged his shoulder.

Newt turned back to him and smiled. “Yeah, I am. It’s just…” Newt sighed. “This is actually nice. I didn’t get to go to a normal high school. I was fourteen when Ava brought me and Sonya to the academy. I didn’t get to attend a pep rally or be in the school play. I didn’t have a prom to get all dressed up for or get in detention for fooling around with my friends in class. This just feels...nice. Normal, y’know?”

Thomas didn’t even think about that. Yeah, he remembered Newt being brought to the school when he was young, but he never thought about the things he missed out on. He didn’t get to receive a rose on Valentine’s Day or hurry to copy homework in the bathroom before class started. He didn’t get the chance to cram all night before an exam or be in the art club. To the average person, this seems like nothing. But to never have experienced something so simple is actually so unfortunate.

Thomas looked over at all his friends. He saw Minho and Brenda screaming at the game which Thomas wasn’t paying attention to anymore. Teresa and Aris were laughing at something Alby said, probably about Minho since that’s who he was gesturing at. Harriet and Sonya were smiling and cuddling together for warmth. It was likely that none of them had gotten to live a normal teenage life like he and Teresa have gotten. Thomas always thought that his life was bad because he didn’t have powers. He didn’t know that having them would drastically change his life.

“Newt, you may have not gotten to live a normal teenage life, but you know what? That didn’t stop you from becoming this sweet, sincere, caring, genuine, strong person you are today. I’ve been to high school, and while it had its great moments, it wasn’t all it’s made out to be. I know you want something normal, but to be honest, we aren’t and we never will be. But it’s okay to be different you know. We stand out from the rest of them. We’re capable of doing things that they never will. So don’t be ashamed of it, embrace it.”

Thomas honestly didn’t know exactly what he was saying. He was never good at the comforting speeches, but he prayed it did some good. But when Newt looked over at Thomas and smiled, he figured it did the trick. “Thanks Tommy,” Newt said as he leaned his head on his shoulder.

Thomas loved these moments. Any form of physical contact with the blonde made Thomas’s heart race, but it also managed to keep him grounded. He rested his head on top of the Brit and let out a content sigh.

While Newt went back to watching the game, Thomas remembered that Thanksgiving was in a week, and he was leaving this weekend to be with his parents. That means he won’t see Newt for almost a week. He didn’t want that. Newt’s not American, so would he even celebrate it?

“Hey Newt, what are you doing for Thanksgiving?”

Newt chuckled. “In case you forgot, I’m British. We don’t celebrate that stupid holiday. Sonya and I will probably just stay at the school with whoever doesn’t go home this year.”

 _Screw that_. “Why don’t you guys come back with me and Teresa?”

Newt got up from Thomas’s shoulders and looked at him with a frown. “What?”

“Yeah, come back with us. My parents won’t mind.”

Newt seemed to think it over for a moment, looking down at his hands and then back to Thomas. “Tommy, are you sure? Because I don’t want to be a bother -”

“Newt. You are never a bother. Just come. Please.”

Thomas didn’t want to spend a week away from Newt. He already hated not seeing him during the day when either of them had classes or training, so he couldn’t imagine surviving a week without him.

Newt had a grin on his face now. “Alright, I’ll come. Thanks Tommy.”

The two went back to leaning against one another and returned their attention back to the game. It was only another few minutes until the Gladers had won, causing Thomas and his friends to roar in victory with the rest of the audience in the bleachers. It wasn’t the football game win he was really happy about. He had won something far greater with these people right next to him.

Sure, it was nice to experience something normal. But Thomas wouldn’t change this strange and wonderful journey he found himself on with his extraordinary friends.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> im sorry its taking so long to see them use their powers, but you'll start seeing them soon  
> thanks for reading this mess :)


	9. Homecoming

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i know thanksgiving isnt for a couple of weeks, but in my defense, i deleted a chapter so my schedule is now a week ahead than normal, so apologies if the timing is weird.  
> enjoy :)  
> 

This Thanksgiving was probably going to be the best Thanksgiving Thomas had so far, or it would blow up in his face. Almost all of their friends, except Aris and Alby, came back with Thomas and Teresa. The girls were staying at Teresa’s house while the boys stayed with Thomas. Since Thomas and Teresa’s parents always did Thanksgiving together, they were all still going to see each other anyway. Thomas let Minho and Newt share his room while Thomas bunked with Chuck so the two could have some sort of privacy.

It’s been a couple of days since they got back, Vince and Mary asking Newt and the others way too many questions, overwhelming his new friends. Granted, they were just trying to be kind and get to know his new friends, but they tend to not know their limit. Chuck was the same way, but surprisingly, he wasn’t as bad as his parents. He thought Newt and Minho were cool - cooler than his brother apparently - which is why now Minho and Chuck were playing video games in Thomas’s room while Thomas and Newt were sat on the brunette’s bed, Thomas watching the two play and Newt drawing in his sketchbook. It was actually pretty funny to watch Minho lose to a twelve year old, but Thomas couldn’t help but stare at Newt while he was working.

His brows were furrowed in concentration as his hand was moving the pencil around the page, shading some parts and drawing lines on others. He hasn’t looked up in about twenty minutes and he was biting his lip - which Thomas couldn’t help but find was attractive as well. Was there anything not attractive about Newt? Nope.

Thomas slowly leaned over to see if he could get a sneak peek of the drawing. It looked like a person, judging by the brief look Thomas got, but he couldn’t look for more than a second as Newt sensed it and immediately went to hide it. “No, you can’t look!”

“Why not?”

“Because it isn’t done and it’s not my best work.”

“Shouldn’t I be the judge of that?”

“Tommy, please. I’ll show you when I’m finished.”

Thomas let Newt go back to his drawings. He could probably finish reading the books he stole from the library, but he decided not to. He would rather spend his time staring at Newt while he drew.

Little did Thomas know, Newt knew he was being stared at, which made the blonde’s lips form a small smile.

* * *

 

Thanksgiving was upon them, and it was madness.

Mary was cooking away in the kitchen, Thomas and his friends doing his best to help her out. Harriet had to teleport to the store a few times to pick up forgotten items that Vince was supposed to get during the week. Chuck and Newt were setting the table while Vince was taking care of the turkey. Minho was mashing the potatoes while Brenda and Sonya did the stuffing and yams. Teresa and her family did some cooking at their house and brought over some side dishes and dessert.

Thomas was never used to so many people on Thanksgiving. At most, it was his and Teresa’s family together, or his aunts and uncles came over - not biological ones, but his parent’s friends were always family to him - but other than that, it was him, Chuck and his parents. They never went all out with huge amounts of food, but since they had extra guests, Mary insisted.

The dinner was delicious, and Thomas couldn’t help but stare at Newt most of the time. Besides the fact that he has feelings for him, he wanted to see how the blonde enjoyed his first Thanksgiving. He thinks for the most part Newt was having a good time - he was smiling a lot, and _definitely_  flirting with Thomas, which was great but Thomas couldn’t help but get flustered - but he never got a moment alone with him. It was nice they got to talk during the day, but he wanted time alone with Newt. Maybe it was selfish, because he was home to spend time with his family, but Thomas couldn’t help himself.

Besides, tomorrow was the last day they were here, and the day after that they would be going back to the school. Thomas could survive without talking to Newt about... _things_... until they got back to the school. And his family home probably wasn’t the best place to discuss his feelings for the Brit.

It was bad enough that his mom already figured out he was crushing on the blonde. She pulled him aside one day and said she noticed the way he was staring at Newt. It was the way she looked at Vince and how Vince looked at her. He blushed and tried to get her to drop the conversation, but Mary told him she saw that same look in Newt’s eyes as well. Mom’s were usually always right, so Thomas prayed that she was right about this too.

* * *

 

Now it was the night before they were going back, and Thomas was spending it in the dining room looking through the books and files that he and Newt had borrowed, not stole. They were planning on returning them once he was finished with them, so he was trying to read them as fast as he could. He learned a lot about the history of powered people.

The first known and documented powered individual was called “Eagle”. His ability was flight and the eyes of an eagle, and he was based in the United States, so Thomas guessed it made sense. At first, when powered people started making themselves known, the public was afraid. They reacted horribly and wanted them to be imprisoned or killed. Over time, as the world was faced with danger, the gifted individuals stepped up and helped save the day. Now, having powered people was the norm, even though there were still people in the world that hated them.

Thomas loved reading all about the different types of heroes. One’s who could control the weather and others who could self combust. He especially loved how the governments of the world formed the Hero Legion, which recruited the gifted individuals to work for the government to step in whenever they were needed. That’s how Thomas’s parents met. They both started working for the legion in their early twenties, after they had fully mastered their abilities. It wasn’t uncommon for gifted people to become a couple, but many of them opted to stay single to focus on their work.

But one thing caught Thomas’s attention. In the files he was scrolling through, he found a section about the attack on Denver eighteen years ago.  But it was different from what his parents had told him. He was told that a terrorist organization unleashed some kind of bioterror attack on the city but was swiftly taken care of, which is not too far off from the document but it isn’t quite right either.

In the file - which most of it had been labeled classified and he wasn't able to access - it mentions an unknown affliction affecting a certain amount of individuals and enemies of unknown origin unleashing themselves onto the city. Those suffering from the disorder were described as sickly looking, some having deformed faces and others even missing limbs. Their eyes were blacker than darkness, and they were able to withstand unimaginable amounts of damage.

Thomas only had one thought after reading this: What the hell happened in Denver?

The sound of feet quietly walking down the steps caught his attention. When the figure reached the bottom of the steps, they saw the dining room light on and walked over. Thomas could already tell who it was the their shadow. “Newt? You okay?”

“Yeah,” the blonde said, coming to stand next to Thomas. His hair was a bit messy, like he was sleeping, and his pajamas hung loose on his body. “Just wanted some water. What are you still doing up?”

“Just finishing these so we can return them when we get back. But look,” he says to Newt, pointing his laptop screen. “Something doesn’t add up. My parents told me about the attack on Denver that happened years ago, but this almost describes it as something else entirely. And the rest of the files are classified. Do you think someone is trying to cover it up? Or maybe hide the truth?”

“What? What would they hide?”

“I don’t know,” Thomas sighed. “I just thought it was weird.”

“Well, yeah it is. But I’m sure everything is okay. Probably locked away for security reasons or something.”

Newt was probably right. It was late, so Thomas’s mind could just be wandering off somewhere. Anyway, Newt was here, so this was insignificant. He closed his laptop and offered Newt that glass of water he was going to get.

He lead the way into the kitchen and went to grab the water while Newt took a seat on one of the stools by the island. “So, what did you think of your week in the Murphy household?” Thomas asked as he grabbed a glass from the cabinet.

“Honestly...it was chaos. There were so many people talking and screaming and laughing, so much preparing and helping. Your aunts and uncles were pretty overwhelming and don’t really understand boundaries.”

Thomas frowned. All he wanted was to give Newt the normal holiday that he didn’t experience. Now it just seems like it was the worst idea ever and Newt had a miserable time.

“But I wouldn’t have it any other way,” Newt said smiling.

Thomas looked at him with confusion. “What do you mean?”

“Well, that’s what it’s like with a real family, right? There’s pressure and stress, but your parents are lovely people. Your little brother is awesome, and I couldn’t have asked for a better first Thanksgiving.”

Thomas was grinning from ear to ear. So he did show Newt a good time. That’s all he wanted. Newt deserved to have something normal in his life. “Good, I’m glad,” Thomas said as he handed Newt his water.

Thomas watched as the blonde took a sip. He took the time to look over Newt’s face, admiring all the little details. God, how can someone be that beautiful?

Maybe Thomas should bring up the kiss. He really wanted to. He wanted to talk about what it meant and ask Newt out on a date He couldn’t deal with the wondering and the "what if's". If Newt rejects him, fine. He’ll deal with it and learn to be only his friend. That would be extremely difficult, but he would do it, because he doesn’t want to lose Newt.

“So, about that kiss on Halloween…”

Thomas saw Newt stiffen a bit. The blonde looked down at his lap and started tapping his finger, like he was nervous. This was definitely going to be an awkward conversation. “I just want you to know that I didn’t do it just  because I was drunk.”

Newt looked up into Thomas’s eyes with the most surprised expression. “What?”

“Newt...I like you. Like, a lot. So, would it be weird to ask you out? Like on a date? You don’t have to say yes! It’s okay if you don’t want to, because I love having you as a friend but -”

Thomas stopped his rambling when the blonde started laughing. It was like a melody ringing in his ears, but while Thomas loved the boy’s laugh, it wasn’t exactly hopeful to hear after he just said he wanted to ask Newt out. That only means one thing: he was about to get rejected. Hard.

“Oh, Tommy,” Newt said in between his laughs. “Gosh, you’re so adorable.”

“Uh...what?”

Newt slid off his seat by the island and moved closer to Thomas with newfound confidence he didn't know the blonde had. “I was kind of hoping for you to do that. Ask me out, that is. Not have a bloody stroke while you do it,” Newt chuckled.

Really? Newt wanted him to ask him out? _This whole time?!_  

But that doesn’t matter anymore. What matters is he did it, and that Newt said yes.

“So, you like me too?”

“You know, everyone says you’re slow,” Newt joked, moving even closer to Thomas with sudden confidence. “But I didn’t think you wouldn’t see I had a crush on you.”

Before Thomas could even come up with a remark, Newt’s lips softly brushed against his own, the pair sharing a gentle kiss. The brunette let out a small squeak at the surprise, but immediately returned the kiss. He was screaming on the inside at the wonderful sensation.

When Newt pulled away, Thomas opened his eyes to the blonde staring at him with that soft warm smile that he had fallen for. He still can’t believe Newt said yes. Maybe he was dreaming all of this. If he was, Thomas never wanted to wake up again.

“Goodnight Tommy,” Newt said as he turned around to walk out.

As Thomas opened his mouth to say goodnight, Newt accidentally bumped into his glass of water that was left on the counter and knocked it over. Both instinctively reached out for it to stop it, even though they couldn’t.

But what was happening now, Thomas didn’t expect. He stood there frozen, his hands not moving their position and his mind not losing focus from what he was doing. What was he doing anyway?

“Thomas...are you doing that?”

The two were looking at the water from inside the glass that should have landed on the floor. Only it didn’t. It was staying in place, like someone was holding it there.

Is Thomas the one holding the water?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> bad news: i won't be able to update for a while (not until probably the end of the month) as my injury hasn't been healing properly and it's very difficult to do this on top of school and work, so ill try to get one more chapter in before thanksgiving, but if not, ill resume after the holidays. really sorry to do this


	10. All is Hell That Ends Well

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hope you all had a wonderful thanksgiving! (if you celebrate it, if not, hope you all had a great weekend too!)  
> also thanks for all the comments last chapter, means the world to me :)

Thomas was lost in his thoughts as he was staring out the window on the train. Most of his friends were currently sleeping, with the exception of Harriet and Newt who were reading books, and they were on their way back to Glade City. He was still trying to process everything that his parents had told him. It wasn’t bad news per se, but hearing it was not easy at all. Especially finding out your parents have lied to you your whole life.

_First thing in the morning, Thomas asked his parents if they could talk in private in their room. He still couldn’t believe what happened last night with Newt. Not just the kiss and the date, but the water. How had he been able to do that? Ava didn’t say anything about water bending!_

_Now, Thomas was sat on his parents bed while the two were waiting for him to speak, worry shown on their faces. “Mom, Dad. Last night I uh...I think I was bending water.”_

_They both seemed surprised at the news, but they should try imagining how surprised Thomas felt last night when doing it!_

_“What do you mean Thomas?” Vince asked. “What happened?”_

_Thomas recalled last night's events - leaving out the part where he and Newt kissed obviously - and told them how he went to stop the glass from spilling, but instead actually controlling the liquid._

_Just like Thomas and Newt last night, his parents were at a loss for words. They clearly were as taken aback by this as Thomas was. Thomas was trying not to overthink everything and think too much about it. He wanted to understand how he was able to do it, but he also wasn’t sure if he was ready to hear the answer._

_When his parents took a seat on both sides of him, he knew what they were about to say wasn’t something good. They always took a seat on either side of him and put their arms were around him when they had to deliver bad news._

_“Thomas,” Mary started. “We haven’t been totally honest with you about your powers. You’re not an airbender.”_

_Not an airbender? But he bended air! If he wasn’t an airbender, what the hell was he?_

_“There’s a lot you don’t know about, and we never wanted to hide it from you,” Vince said. “We just wanted to wait for the right time to tell you.”_

_“Tell me what?”_

_“Thomas…”_

“Thomas.”

His name being called snap him out of his thoughts. He turned to his right to see Newt staring at him with worry. “Are you alright?”

“Yeah, I am,” he lied. He didn’t like lying to his - boyfriend? Who knows at this point - but he didn’t want Newt to worry.

Newt put a comforting hand over his own and told him that they were only a couple of minutes away from their stop. As soon as they got unpacked, Thomas was going to Ava and demand some answers from her.

* * *

 

Thomas rushed inside the house as soon as he and his friends made it there. He had to see Ava right now. Nothing else mattered. He didn’t want to talk to his friends about it - not that he didn’t think he could, but they just wouldn’t understand - and wanted to know why he’s been lied to his whole life. Once he put his bags down on his bed, he attempted to rush out of the room, only to see Teresa standing in the doorway, blocking his path.

“What’s going on Tom? You’ve been acting weird the whole day.”

Thomas made a mental note not to think about it near Teresa so so couldn’t figure it out. He didn’t enjoy lying to his best friend, but he himself didn’t fully grasp what was going on, so how would she be able to? “I can’t talk right now, Teresa. I need to find Ava.”

“Tom, don’t lie to me. You’re practically my brother, you know you can tell me anything.”

“I know, I know. Just not right now. Can you please move - ”

“Not until you tell me.”

“Teresa, please move - ”

“No.”

“Move Teresa - ”

“Tom - ”

“CAN YOU JUST MIND YOUR OWN BUSINESS AND GET OUT OF MY WAY?”

Teresa wasn’t expecting the outburst, judging by the faint look of fear in her eyes. But it quickly formed into a bit of anger, and she definitely was upset that her best friend had just screamed at her, but what did she expect? She kept pushing when he kept saying to leave him alone. If he had to yell for her to listen, so be it.

She remained silent, looked down at the ground and moved aside. Thomas took advantage and walked passed her and rushed down the stairs.

He ran into Minho on the bottom of the steps. He asked what was going on, but Thomas completely ignored him and shoved past him towards the front door, pretending he didn’t hear Minho calling after him as he walked away.

But apparently, Minho wasn’t having any of that. As Thomas kept walking towards where Ava was, he still heard Minho’s voice calling after him. “Yo, Thomas! What the hell man?”

“Just leave me alone Minho.”

“No,” Minho said, moving in front of Thomas putting a hand on his chest to stop him. “What the hell is going on?”

“None of your damn business,” Thomas said, attempting to walk again, but Minho wasn’t letting him move.

“I don’t care whether it’s my business or not. You just screamed at your best friend. Tell me what’s bothering you.”

Thomas was starting to get really angry now. It was nobody’s business but his own! How dare his parents lie to him for eighteen years! How dare they think that it was okay to keep secrets from him his whole life! And why did Ava go along with the lie this whole time?!

“Thomas, just talk to me!”

“Minho, I’m warning you - ”

“Oh, your warning me?” the Asian scoffed. “Listen, shank. All we want to do is help you but you’re such an idiot that you can’t see that!”

Thomas was getting angrier. “Minho - ”

“Don’t Minho me! Why the hell - ”

Minho’s sentence was cut short when Thomas sent a fist into his face. The Asian fell back to the ground by the force of it. When he looked back up, Thomas’s own rage was mirroring in Minho’s eyes. He knew what he just done, and he knew what was about to happen.

Immediately, Minho got up and tackled Thomas to the ground. They were both throwing punches and trying to pin the other to the ground. A crowd gathered around, but nobody was cheering or attempting to break it up. They all just stood and watched.

Then Thomas remembered. He has powers.

He channeled the air around him through his body and into his hands, and sent Minho flying off of him. The Asian landed on the ground hard, but quickly recovered.

“Oh, so you want to use your powers?” Minho remarked as raised his hand and flames began to appear. “Bring it on, _greenie_.”

Thomas _hated_ being called greenie.

Minho began to throw fire at him, but Thomas was able to deflect them all. He flipped through the air and landing back on his feet, sending an air swipe towards Minho. The Asian managed to jump over the attack and sent a stream a fire at Thomas.

The flames were coming straight to his face, and he didn’t have time to stop it. He closed his eyes and prepared for what was about to happen. Only, the flames never hit him.

Thomas opened his eyes and saw a red mist or something surrounding Minho’s fire, like magic. Then the flame was sent upwards into the air and away from everyone. Thomas didn’t understand what just happened. Then he watched the same mist surround Minho and throw him to the ground. The red was suddenly around him and he was forced to the ground as well. What the hell just happened?

A familiar voice was the answer he was looking for. “What in the _bloody hell_ are you two doing?!”

Thomas looked up to see Newt standing in between them. And he did _not_ look happy. His hands were glowing the same red that was on him and Minho. He had never seen Newt’s magic before, and despite it being used on him, it was actually an astonishing sight.

Thomas then looked over at Minho, who was wearing the same expression he had. Thomas realized what he had just done and instantly felt guilt flood through him. Why did he get so angry? It wasn’t Minho or Teresa or anyone else’s fault that his parents lied to him.

He didn’t get anymore time to dwell on the topic as Ava and two guards came over to the both of them, not looking pleased. “Mr. Murphy, Mr. Park,” Ava said sternly. “Come with me right this instant.”

Both boys followed her without question. As he was walking away with Ava, Minho, and the guards, Thomas felt Newt’s eyes on him. Minho may have been the firebender, but Newt’s gaze burned a whole lot worse.

* * *

 

Minho went into Ava’s office first. Their talk was only for about ten minutes, and then he was gone. The two boys briefly shared a look with each other, as if saying they were sorry, and Minho left. Thomas hopes he can fix this. Minho was the first friend he had made here, and he had been nothing short of a great friend. Thomas had to find a way for Minho to forgive him.

Ava called Thomas in next, and he sat down in her office. She sat down behind her desk, and leaned back into her chair, studying Thomas. “So, Thomas. Minho tells me that you were very angry today. Care to explain?”

“Do I even have to? You already know it.”

Thomas may feel remorse about his anger towards his friends, but he sure isn’t about to let Ava off that easily. Yeah, she may not be his parents and she was doing what she was told, but how could someone who takes care of powered people not care about this? She lied about who he was, she prevented him from going to do research because it risked him finding out about who he was, and she was acting like she didn’t do anything!

And his parents. How could they not tell him? They’ve seen him struggling with this for years. He spent nights hating himself, thinking he was a failure because he couldn’t discover his gift. Day after day, he tried so hard to find it. His mom even caught him crying one night in his room, and she held him and told him it would be okay. She could have told him right then and there, but no. She continued to lie to him, and so did his father.

“I beg your pardon?” Ava asked.

“Don’t play dumb. I know you and my parents talked and you’ve been hiding things from me.”

Ava sighed. “You are right. And I apologize for that Thomas, but I was doing what your parents asked me to do. I had to respect their wishes.”

“And what about me? I don’t get any respect?”

“Of course you do, Thomas. But seeing your reaction, you can understand why they didn’t tell you. You lashed out in anger at your friends, and you are yelling at the people who want to help you.”

Help him? If they wanted to help him, why would they have lied to him this whole time?

“So, what do we do now?” Thomas asked. He figures he has a lot more training to do now, so might as well get started.

“I can start giving you lessons involving waterbending, and I will assign Mr. Jones to help as well. You and Aris are friends, right?”

Friends.

Yeah, Aris was his friend. So was Minho. And Teresa.

Thomas sighed. He had really screwed up big time. He needs to remember that they had nothing to do with this, so he needs to be nicer to them. “Yeah, he’s my friend.”

“Okay, I’ll speak to him this evening and we’ll start tomorrow. And I will tell you everything about this, Thomas. Just not all at once.”

Thomas nodded and left Ava’s office. He headed home as he had two people to apologize to. On the way, he recalled the conversation he and his parents had.

 

_“Thomas…”_

_Both his parents had fallen silent, which really put Thomas more on edge. They needed to tell him now before he freaks out. “Mom, Dad, I really need to know. Please. Tell me.”_

_His mother sighed and his father took a deep breath, as a way to prepare for dropping a bomb._

  


_“Thomas...you’re the next Exemplar.”_

 

Thomas sighed. He’s thinking back to when he didn’t know what his power was. He had never imagined this.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so yeah this was a dramatic chapter that was totally unnecessary because lets face it you all know this is where it was going. but at least we saw a bit of them using their powers, right??


	11. Clairvoyant

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> im warning you i only briefly looked this over for mistakes because i wanted to update but im finishing a research paper at the same time so i did it in like two seconds ¯\\_(ツ)_/¯

“Close your eyes,” Aris ordered. “Place your hands above the water with your palms facing the water.”

A week later, and Thomas was working with Aris almost everyday to practice his water bending. When Aris first found out, he was shocked and excited and came running into Thomas’s room to talk with him about it. Unfortunately, Minho was there too - they made up the same day, and somehow Thomas had managed the Asian not to be mad at him. Teresa wasn’t as easy to convince, but she at least wasn’t ignoring him completely anymore - and Aris let slip that Thomas is an Exemplar. Minho was completely shocked and excited, running over to Thomas and asking him millions of questions. Eventually, the whole group found out, and they were all in awe.

Aris was a hard teacher, although not as hard as Alby, whom he still has occasional sessions with to keep up his air bending skills. Luckily, Exemplars can master the abilities faster than normal benders, so he could be pretty well trained soon. Maybe not a master, but definitely up there. 

Now, they were in a bathroom overlooking a bathtub full of water. Aris kept telling Thomas to focus on his chi. It was important to keep a calm mind while water bending because if a bender were to lose focus or lose their temper, they would lose control and their force would be intensified. So he kept repeating Aris’s in his head as they were given.

“Now, slowly lift your hands up and feel the chi tugging on the center of you palm as you lift the chi in the water that is connected with your hands.”

Thomas was hoping he was following Aris’s commands and doing it right. 

“Open your eyes Thomas.”

When he did, he couldn’t help but grin. He had raised the water! He was bending water!

“Not bad,” Aris complimented.  “You’ve gone over breathing meditation with Ava right?”

When Thomas nodded, he let the water fall and Aris continued. “Okay, we’ve done a little of chi projection, so tomorrow we will start with tides and move into waves.”

“Awesome. Thank you so much Aris.”

Thomas was grateful that he had friends who were willing to teach him. They were all making this a little bit easier on him. Thomas wasn’t as angry at his parents for lying to him anymore, but it still hurt that they kept it from him.    
“It’s no big deal,” Aris dismissed. “I hated my waterbending teacher, so I figured I spare you. Anyway, I’ll see you later. I’m going to meet up with Teresa.”

He and Aris had a talk earlier in the week concerning Teresa. Thomas made sure Aris’s motives were pure and made sure that if he ever hurt her, Thomas would end him. Aris assured Thomas that he was not going to hurt Teresa in anyway, and that he liked her a lot. Aris was a good guy, Thomas liked him. And he was happy for the two of them. 

It seems like everybody but him has a love life. Teresa has Aris, Minho has Brenda, Harriet has Sonya. If only Thomas could have Newt, but the brunette was avoiding the blonde.

Why? Because he was too ashamed to face him after his fight with Minho. Which is stupid, because if he and Minho could make up, he and Newt sure could. But Thomas remembers that look in Newt’s eye when he saw the two fighting: shame, disappointment. Newt thought Thomas was better than that, and Thomas didn’t want to see that look in Newt’s eyes again. So it was just easier to stay away.

Actually, it was so,  _ so  _ hard.

* * *

 

She was exhausted, but she had to keep going. It was life or death. 

She raised her staff to block the blow, but she was knocked off her feet by another opponent. After landing on the ground, Teresa rolled out of the way and dodged the next attack, moving to kick her feet out and knock down Sonya. But she forgot about Harriet, who was now on top of her, ready to deliver the final blow. Harriet raised her baton and swung, Teresa closing her eyes, but the impact never came. She peeked her eyes open and it was stopped barely an inch away from her face. 

“Not bad,” Harriet said, moving to get off of Teresa.

“Yeah, you’re getting pretty good,” Sonya said as she was getting up off the floor.

People with powers like the girls had needed other ways to fight and defend themselves, so they had to master physical combat. Sonya and Harriet offered to practice with Teresa so her skills would improve. “But not as good as you girls,” Teresa said, standing up as well. “Gosh, this is so tiring.”

“You get used to it,” Harriet said.

Teresa hoped she would. She was trying to learn as much as she could as quickly as possible, because come the end of the summer, she would be heading back home. 

She’s grateful that she was allowed this experience, but this wasn’t her life.She so badly wanted to go to college and attempt a normal boring life of a biology major. She mainly came so Thomas wouldn’t be alone, but he’s definitely got a great support system now. 

Even though Thomas had apologized to her and she forgave him, Teresa was still upset with him. He didn’t have to be so rude, and he definitely didn’t have to get into a fight with Minho. That was actually the reason Teresa was still not speaking to him so much. Minho was just trying to help, and Thomas just punches him? He’s lucky Minho and the rest of their friends were understanding and good people. They were such extraordinary people, and she doesn’t mean because of their powers, but because of who they were.

She was glad to have made friends - girl friends to be precise - when she came here. Teresa knew she was a bit of a ‘tomboy’ growing up, and had more guy friends than girls, but having Harriet, Sonya, and Brenda made coming here so much more pleasant.

So did Aris.

Whom of which she had plans with. 

So she bid farewell to her friends and headed home to freshen up.

Part of her really wants to be with Aris. He’s handsome, sweet, funny, and pretty smart. But the other part of her is telling her not to lead him on as she wasn’t going to be here forever. Aris wouldn’t be here forever either, so maybe they could make long distance work. 

Of course they could. They were capable of being superheroes, so they can handle a long distance relationship.

* * *

 

 

Thomas had just finished another meeting with Ava Paige to discuss his progress - he was trying not to be bitter to the woman anymore. After all, she was only trying to help - and he was walking home, lost in thought thinking about anything and everything. When would his earth and fire bending start? Could he already do them if he tried? Is Newt still disappointed in him? Are his parents hiding anything else from him?

He was so lost in his thoughts that he wasn’t paying attention to where he was going and he bumped right into someone. Said person fell backwards into the fountain that was in the middle of the grounds. “Oh, shit! I’m sorry - ”

_ “You!” _

Thomas finally took the time to look at the person, and he froze at who it was.

Gally.

Gally was dripping wet, eyes locked on Thomas and fuming with anger. If this was a cartoon, his face would be red as a tomato and smoke would be coming out of his ears. Gally stood up and harshly grabbed Thomas by the collar of his shirt. “That’s twice already you’ve managed to piss me off,” Gally spat.

But Thomas wasn’t going to let Gally treat him the way he did when he first arrived here. He wasn’t the same Thomas anymore. So he shoved Gally off of him and put some distance between them. “Back off Gally, I didn’t do it on purpose.”

“Oh, you got some backbone now, huh? You already duked it out with Minho, why not take a swing at me too?”

He knew Gally was taunting him on purpose. If Thomas got into another fight on grounds with a student, it would most likely end with him getting kicked out. And he couldn’t let that happen. But Thomas always let his emotions get the best of him and couldn’t help getting angry. So he decided to taunt him back. “I knocked you over without looking twice, Gally. You aren’t capable of winning a fight.”

Thomas really needs to learn how to think before doing things. He needs to talk to Aris about how to keep his anger in check.

Gally started to raise his fist, and Thomas was ready to retaliate.  But it was over before it started. Gally’s hand was stuck in the air with red magic glowing around it.

“Back off Gally,” a familiar British voice said. “Or you’ll be sorry.”

That’s twice now Newt managed to save him from a fight.

“Always got someone to protect you, don’t ya?” Gally hissed.

The boy took a step back and grumbled as he walked away. Thomas looked over at Newt who had a blank expression on his face. It had been days since he had seen this face up close, and he really missed it. “Thanks Newt.”

Newt nodded and walked off. But Thomas wasn’t going to let him go. They haven’t really spoken since his fight with Minho, and it took seeing the blonde to remember how much he missed him.

“Newt, wait!” Thomas called running towards the blonde.

“Oh, now you’re speaking to me?” Newt scoffed, turning around to face him.

“Newt, I’m sorry. It’s just...that look you gave me when I fought with Minho. I thought you were done with me. And I was too much of a coward to say something to you.”

Thomas didn’t think there was anything he could say that would fix it. He thought Newt wouldn’t want to be friends with him anymore. He thought Newt wouldn’t want to go on a date with him after that. And when issues arrived, Thomas rarely took them head on. Avoiding them at all costs until he couldn’t anymore was his usual strategy.

“Tommy,” Newt sighed. To hear Newt call him Tommy brought a sudden warmth to his heart. Maybe Newt wasn’t mad after all. “I was disappointed, yes. But that doesn’t mean I hated you or anything. I was just upset with both of you because you guys could have gotten kicked out of here. And I don’t want to lose you.”

Newt didn’t want to lose Thomas. As in a friend or....?

Should Thomas even bother to bring up the date again? He really didn’t want to push his luck, but he’d be lying if he didn’t say all he thought about was dating Newt.

“So, we’re still friends?”

“Friends?” Newt raised an eyebrow, a small smirk forming on his lips. “Do friends kiss each other and ask each other on dates?”

Thomas’s heart skipped a beat. Newt still wanted to go on a date! Or at least that’s what Thomas thinks he meant. “So...you still wanna go on a date with me?”

Newt smiled and let out the quietest chuckle. “Yeah. I do.”

* * *

 

So Thomas was going to take Newt out on a date this weekend. Only, he didn’t know what to do. Minho and Alby knew Newt the best so he should probably ask them.

Since it was still a bit early after their talk, Newt decided to come over and hang out with Thomas and the others. Just a fun night laughing and talking and hanging out seemed like a good way to end the night.

But as soon as he walked into the house, he knew that wasn’t what would happen.

He heard Harriet talking to someone, like she was terrified, but she was talking too low that he couldn’t understand her. But apparently Newt knew what was going on because once he heard her, he sprinted towards the voice. Thomas was right on his heels.

In the living room, Sonya was thrashing on the couch with her eyes closed like she was having a nightmare, but it seemed so much worse. Even with her eyes closed, you can feel the terror radiating off the poor girl. She was whimpering and even sometimes she yelled, as if she was trying to force herself awake. Harriet was by her side offering comfort and trying to wake her up. Newt ran over and kneeled next to his sister, running a hand through her hair. “Shh, Sonny. It’s okay. You’re okay,” he whispered to her.

“I’m going to get her journal,” Harriet said, her voice a bit shaky. In a matter of seconds, she disappeared and reappeared, now holding a journal and a pen.

“Can I do anything to help?” Thomas asked. He felt so useless, and it hurt him to see Sonya like that. It hurt to see Harriet and Newt so worried about her.

“No, you can’t,” Newt said. “She just needs to wake up. She’s having a vision of the future.”

Before Thomas could even ask about that, Sonya shot up into a sitting position, taking a sharp intake of breath as she did so. She started panting, putting a hand over her chest. She was mumbling something, but she wasn’t making any sense.

“Sonya, calm down babe,” Harriet soothed. “Relax and tell us what you saw.”

“Pink. I saw pink,”  Sonya started, trying to recall her vision. “Someone was screaming. Then I saw fire. Like an explosion.” She then turned to her brother. “You were there. I think you were in trouble. I saw you using your powers. You were scared and fighting. Thomas was there too. Maybe some others, there were a few figures, but I can’t be sure. It’s all fading.”

What the hell is going on? Thomas and Newt were going to get caught in an explosion? Newt was going to be fighting someone?

“Something bad is going to happen to you guys, but I don’t know when.”

Sonya’s breathing started to go back to normal, and she cuddled into her girlfriend’s chest. Newt looked back at Thomas, and Newt was mirroring the same expression Thomas had: worry, confusion, and fear.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)


	12. Colors of Love

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> newtmas date...that's it. that's the chapter.  
> these next few chapters are pretty much fluff because things are going to be happening soon and they deserve some fun and happiness before it all goes to hell  
> and i barely looked this over tbh

“Okay, that's enough for today. Clearly, you’re head isn’t in the right space.”

Aris was annoyed with Thomas today, and Thomas understands. He hasn’t been himself recently. Ever since Sonya’s vision, he’s been living on edge. He’s constantly nervous and texting Newt every hour making sure he’s okay. But apparently, Sonya’s visions could be taking place at anytime. A day later, a month later, they could even happen hundreds of years later. Newt assured him that everything will be okay, but Thomas was still nervous for them.

But on a positive note, tonight was their first date. That was another reason that Thomas wasn’t able to focus on his water bending lesson with Aris today. All he thought about was what to wear to impress Newt, how not to act like an idiot in front of him, and hoping that the date would turn out to be okay.

Since Thomas didn’t explore Glade City that much, the others were a tremendous help in planning the perfect date. Alby and Sonya practically knew Newt inside out, and Minho and Brenda knew the best places to go. Harriet even suggested taking a walk in the park afterwards before they came home.

Tonight was going to be a good night. At least, Thomas is hoping. He’s praying that Sonya’s vision wasn’t happening tonight. To be on the safe side, Harriet and the others were all hanging out together and if something happens, she’ll teleport everyone to Thomas and Newt. Can’t be too careful right?

And Thomas was doing pretty well with air bending and water bending, despite the fact that he wasn’t doing his best today. “Sorry, Aris. My mind is all over the place.”

“Relax, Thomas. It’s just a date. It’ll be great,” Aris said.

Yeah. It would be great.

* * *

 

Newt was finishing up getting dressed for his date tonight. It was colder now, being that it was December, but it wasn’t too bad. He put on dark skinny jeans, a pair of vans, a white button down and a black sweater over it. Thomas said dress casual, and Newt was doing his best to look good without seeming like he was trying. Hopefully it works.

While giving his hair one last check in the mirror, there was a knock on his door. But he was supposed to meet Thomas at his place, right? He walked over and opened the door to find a dark haired person, but not the one he had a date with tonight. It was his date’s best friend. “Teresa?”

“Hey Newt,” she greeted.

“What are you doing here?”

“Aren’t you going to ask me in?”

“Oh, yeah. Sorry.”

He moved aside to let her in and shut the door. He watched as she analyzed his small two room apartment. He had a living room/kitchen/bedroom and a bathroom. Even though these were more secure rooms, Ava didn’t want these to feel like a prison, so she turned it into a small flat. Newt was glad it wasn’t just a bed and a desk like a college dorm room. A part of him wishes he didn’t live alone anymore, but it was definitely safer to live in solitude. No chance of hurting anyone, even if he did wear his braces.

“So what’s up?” Newt asked.

“Well, you’re going on a date with my best friend tonight,” Teresa said in a tone that sent shivers down his spine. “You and I,” she gestured to them using her hand, “we’re going to have a nice little chat.”

Newt gulped.

* * *

 

“How do I look?”

“With your eyes, dumbass.”

Minho’s comment earned him an elbow to the ribs from Brenda. Thomas had spent the last hour figuring out what to wear tonight, and no matter what he tried on, he felt like it wasn’t good enough for Newt. But after the girls trying to match shirts with pants and shoes - Thomas has never been undressed in front of so many people before - the girls were at peace with what was the perfect ‘Thomas’ look. Turns out, it was a white v-neck tee with a dark red flannel, khaki pants, and nice pair of sneakers. Brenda even styled his hair to look a bit messy.

“You look perfect Thomas,” Harriet complimented.

“Thanks guys.”

“Now time for the talk,” Sonya said in a serious tone.

“The talk?” 

“You know, if you hurt Newt, we’ll all kill you,” Brenda said.

Oh, the talk. Thomas’s nerves started going crazy as Sonya, Harriet, Brenda, Minho, and Alby circled around Thomas. If Thomas didn’t know them, it would feel like he was about to be murdered.

Each of them said something about how Newt deserved all the happiness in the world, how he didn’t deserve to have his heartbroken. Sonya gave a  _ very  _ detailed explanation of what she would do to Thomas if he ever hurt her brother, but he assured her it would never come to that. Thomas wholeheartedly agreed with all of his friends. It warmed his heart to see that they cared so much about their friend. 

Everyone but Minho had spoken, so Thomas was waiting for the Asian to say something.

“Ditto to everything they just said.”

Thomas didn’t expect anything different. But despite his sarcasm, Thomas knew that Minho cared deeply about the blonde, and would probably murder Thomas if he ever hurt him. Which he wouldn't do, therefore he would not be killed.

“Also,” Minho said while grabbing a plastic bag from underneath his bed. “Here. Just in case.”

Thomas was confused but took a look inside the bag. “Oh, Minho! What the hell?!”

Inside the bag were a box of condoms and lube. Even though it’s Minho, he didn’t expect  _ that. _

“Just in case you guys have sex! I want you to be safe!”

“It’s our first date! I’m not planning to have sex with him!”

“So you’re saying you don’t want to have sex with him? Why not?”

“What?! Minho - ”

Thomas’s phone interrupted his train of thought. He reached into his pocket and saw a text from Newt saying he was outside. Thomas threw the bag onto his bed and ran out of the bedroom, grabbing his jacket on the way. He was running so fast that he almost tripped going down the stairs. 

When he opened the door, he couldn’t help but stare at how gorgeous Newt looked. Yeah, he knew Newt was beautiful, but tonight he just looked…

“Wow,” Thomas breathed out, still panting from sprinting to the door.

Newt smiled and blushed a little. “I’ll take that as a compliment?”

“Yeah. You look...you look amazing Newt.”

“So do you Tommy,” Newt said, reaching out to take Thomas’s hand. “Shall we go?”

* * *

 

Alby and Sonya told Thomas that The Homestead was Newt’s favorite restaurant in Glade City. The blonde didn’t adventure out into the city too often - Thomas knew Newt was still scared of his powers - but when he did, this was always a stop on his journey. It was no five-star restaurant, but it was definitely good for a date. They were seated at a comfy booth, the light a bit dim making it seem a bit more romantic.  

“Well, Tommy. You’ve got a good taste in restaurants.”

“A little birdie may have told me that you love coming here,” Thomas teased.

“Really?” Newt smirked. “Well, a little birdie may have threatened to castrate me about breaking your heart.”

“What?”

“Teresa. She gave me the whole ‘if you hurt him I’ll end you’ talk. That was one of the bloody scariest moments of my life.”

“Everyone at the house gave me the same talk too,” Thomas mused. He decided to leave out the part where Minho did... _ that thing _ . That was a story for another time.

The rest of the time at the restaurant was spent laughing and telling stories, Thomas recalling the one time he almost set his house on fire when he put his plastic food toys in the oven. Thomas would never get tired of hearing Newt’s laugh or watching him throw his head back like a little kid. 

Afterwards, Thomas took Harriet’s advice and walked through the park with Newt, holding his hand as they did so. As corny as it sounded, their hands seamlessly fit together, like two puzzle pieces. Thomas held hands with his ex-girlfriend, but nothing compared to this. Everything in the past felt wrong compared to Newt. Newt felt right. Newt felt like home.

Thomas brought Newt over to the patch of grass near the pond and went to lie on his back, the blonde following the same motion. They were looking up at the stars, holding hands, and talking about anything and everything. Sometimes they were silent for a few moments, but it was a comfortable silence. Just being together was enough for Thomas.

“So you never really told me what your parents said to you,” Newt said, turning his head to face Thomas.

He didn’t. And it wasn’t that he didn’t want to, but the time never came up. “Uh, yeah. Guess not.”

“You don’t have to tell me if you don’t want to.”

“I do,” Thomas said, turning to face Newt. He wanted Newt to know everything about him. 

Thomas then recounted the story his family told him - although it felt like they left out a lot. When his parents were in the Hero Legion, the Exemplar at the time wasn’t the most focused leader. During an attack on Detroit, he made a wrong decision, and the entire city was left in ruins.  A dispute broke out in between the heroes, calling for the Exemplar to stand down from his role. But one hero in the legion was so angered by the Exemplar’s actions that he murdered him. Apparently, that hero had a family in Detroit, and they were killed because of the Exemplar’s incompetence. That man fled, and has not been seen since. The rest of them attempted to pick up the pieces, but it was never the same. That’s why Mary and Vince - and apparently Ava - left the legion. It wasn’t what it used to be.

They also mentioned how the gem in Thomas’s medallion was the Infinity gem. When an Exemplar dies, their soul goes into the gem, and Thomas uses it to go into the Exemplar State. He has no idea what that involves, but Ava said they can’t focus on that until he’s mastered the elements.

“So why couldn’t they just tell you all that?” Newt asked. “There’s nothing in that story would hurt you.”

“I know,” Thomas admitted. “Which is why I think it’s not the full story.”

There had to be more, Thomas was sure of it. But he wasn’t going to think about that tonight. Tonight was his date with Newt. All he wanted to do was focus on the blonde in front of him. So he changed the subject and talked about Newt’s life. They discussed how it was growing up with Sonya, how Sonya met Harriet, how Minho somehow managed to win Brenda over, and so much more. They may have also kissed a few times in between their exchanging of stories.

Thomas walked Newt home, all the way to his door. It was such a great night, and he couldn’t wait to have more great nights with Newt. He feels like they have gotten to know each other a lot better. Yet, ever since he met the blonde, it felt like they’ve known each other forever. It was weird, but definitely welcoming.

“So,” Thomas said while scratching the back of his neck. “I really had a great time Newt.”

“Me too Tommy,” Newt replied with a nervous smile.

“You sure you want to be my boyfriend? Because once you say yes, there’s no turning back,” he teased.

“I’m damn sure,” Newt answered confidently. 

As per tradition, Thomas leaned in to give Newt a goodnight kiss. It was soft and delicate, their lips moving perfectly in sync with one another. Euphoria was washing over him. He felt so safe and comforted in their embrace. The butterflies were going crazy in his stomach. It was like he had been color blind his whole life and the world had exploded into technicolor. 

In that moment, in those few seconds of bliss and ecstasy, Thomas knew in his heart that this was right. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> it was cheesy wasnt it


	13. Fill My Heart

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> more fluff and stuff for newtmas  
> they deserve happiness so ¯\\_(ツ)_/¯

The next couple of weeks go by in the blink of an eye. Thomas is now officially a water bender, which means soon  he can start Earthbending! After that is fire, which scares Thomas a bit, but also excites him. Brenda and Minho already offered to help guide him, so he doesn’t think it will be that bad.

Ava has offered him more books to read to further his studies about being an Exemplar. He didn’t realize just how much there was needed to know. Besides bending, there was the ability to travel into Limbo, the world between the living in the dead - which, to be completely honest, Thomas wasn’t too thrilled to learn that - and could communicate with spirits and deities. Many Exemplars did this to seek answers that they could not find on their own, but it was very risky. There was no way to practice the ability to come back, so it was likely that you could get trapped in Limbo. Knowing Thomas, he probably would.

And there was also the Exemplar State, in which Thomas would be at his most powerful, yet his most vulnerable. Exemplars can channel vast cosmic energies giving them increased strength and the ability to perform very powerful and extraordinary feats of bending. Exemplars may unconsciously enter the state in response to perception of danger, using the state as a defense mechanism, or when under emotional distress.   
While in this state, the Exemplar has access to bending techniques that may have not yet been learned in their current lifetime, but has no conscious control over the resulting actions. This can cause great collateral damage. But once fully mastered, the Exemplar has conscious control over the State and can enter and exit it at will. 

Thomas has a long way to go with training yet.

It seems not only him, but everyone around him is excelling lately. Minho was apparently learning lightning redirection, which is quite dangerous but good to know. Teresa was doing great with her mind reading and telepathy, while also doing well in close combat with Harriet and Sonya. And since Newt was becoming more confident in himself, he wasn’t wearing his braces as often and began to meet with Ava once in a while to dive deeper into his magic. It was nice to see him be able to finally not be afraid of his magic. Thomas knows how much Newt is scared of his powers, so for him take the braces off took a lot of strength on Newt’s part. He couldn’t be more proud of his boyfriend.

Thomas was now going to his next lesson with Aris today, and he was told Alby would be joining them as well. Except this lesson would be held near the pond on the east side of the campus, which was weird to Thomas, but he agreed nonetheless. 

He reached the designated meeting area a few minutes early, and Aris and Alby were yet to be seen. But something felt off. Thomas could feel it in his bones. His hair on the back of his neck stood up and a chill ran down his spine. There was an incoming threat.  

He looked around and saw nothing, but he knows someone is here watching him, waiting to strike. Then he sensed it.

He barely turned around time to stop the water from hitting him. A huge wave was preparing to crash down on him, but Thomas bended the water back down into the pond. Across from the pool of water, he saw Aris standing there, grinning. “Aris, what the hell man?”

“Don’t lose focus in a fight.”

What?

Thomas didn’t get to reply to Aris as he felt a force of wind knock him off of his feet. He rolled and recovered, rising to see Alby standing about twenty feet away. “Come on, green bean. Let’s see what you got.”

“You’ve got to be kidding me,” Thomas mumbled.

Alby sent another gust of air at him, but Thomas redirected it upwards into the air. He barely had time to block Aris’s next attack, but he was able to hold the water in its place. He sent it back crashing towards Aris. But the lighter brunette simply froze the water before it hit him. That was actually a pretty cool move.

Once again, Thomas lost focus, and found himself hitting the ground again. The next thing he knew, water was circling around him and it turned into ice shards, freezing Thomas in his place. He was stuck, and he couldn’t get out.

“Come on Thomas,” Alby taunted. “You can’t be this awful.”

“Yeah, you think the Exemplar would be able to outdo two benders,” Aris added.

“In my defense, I haven’t been doing this long as you two,” Thomas barked.

Alby just laughed. “Geez, maybe you were better off without powers. I mean, you’re practically useless. It’s like you don’t have powers at all.”

Thomas was starting to get irritated. He clenched his fists and grit his teeth. They knew he had a temper and they were using it against him.

“Yeah,” Aris agreed. “He’s a waste of an Exemplar. His parents would be so disappointed in him.”

He was getting angrier now. He could feel the rage swelling inside him. No, not rage. Something more fierce. Something way stronger.

“You know,” Alby said, his tone mischievous. “I bet Newt won’t want someone who’s weak and defenseless. Once we tell Newt about this, he’ll probably dump the useless shank.”

“And imagine if Chuck or Newt were in danger? Thomas wouldn’t be able to save them.”

“They’d die horribly because Thomas the Exemplar wasn’t strong enough.” 

_ That’s it. _

Thomas screamed out in anger. Something powerful stirred in him. His eyes and veins began to glow a bright pale blue, and he felt stronger than ever.  He used this newfound energy and broke out of the shards of ice, his body levitating in the air. He took the broken ice and turned them into water and sent a wave at Alby, knocking him off his feet. Thomas froze the water, sealing Alby underneath it with just his head sticking out. Then he turned to Aris. He manipulated the air flow around the boy so it made it difficult for him to breathe. Once he was unable to block an attack, he directed a strong gust of air at him, successfully taking him down. 

The two looked at Thomas in awe and worry.

Aris was quick to his feet again, reaching into his pocket. Thomas was prepared for the boy to attack again, but instead he pulled out his cell phone. And he faced the screen at Thomas, trying to show him something.

A picture of Newt.

He was smiling in the photo, radiating with pure joy.  It was enough to snap him from his daze and he began to feel the rage leave him. He felt himself coming back to the ground, and when his feet touched it, his veins and eyes were no longer glowing. 

Aris put his phone away and went to unfreeze Alby.. Thomas felt his rage finally leave him and he took a deep breath, calming him completely. He felt drained, completely out of energy and wasn’t even sure what had overcome him.  

“Told you Newt would be his anchor,” Aris said to Alby as he he offered a hand to help him up.

“Yeah,yeah,” Alby muttered after standing up, now completely drenched. “Not bad, greenbean. For a second I thought you might kill us.”

“Well, you guys pissed me off.” Is pissed off even the way to describe that? Definitely not. He felt prepared to do serious damage to his friends. That was  _ beyond  _ pissed off.

“We’re gonna have to work on that temper,” Alby said walking over to Thomas. “Can’t have you going into Exemplar State without completing your training.”

So that’s what it was like being in Exemplar State? Thomas didn’t like it. He felt too strong and he didn’t know what he was doing. He felt like he was going to destroy everything in his path.    
“You’re fighting skills aren’t too shabby,” Aris added, “considering how long you’ve been training, and it’s obvious you can bend the elements. I was surprised to see you were able to freeze Alby though. We didn't even go over that yet.”

Thomas was just as surprised as well. He didn’t know how he did it, he just did. 

“But you need to learn how to control your anger,” Alby said.

“So you guys were taunting me on purpose?”

The two nodded. Thomas thought back to how it felt with all of that fury coursing through his body. It felt powerful yet terrifying; he didn’t feel like himself in that moment. “So, all of that was to prove a point? You couldn’t just tell me that?”

“You needed to see what it’s like when you aren’t focused. You need a clear head in combat,” Alby said. “Otherwise, you’ll make a mistake.”

“Emotions are distractions,” Aris added. “So you can’t feel any of them while you fight. No anger, no hate... no love.”

Love. 

How could a person not feel love? Everyone loves somebody. Thomas loved his mother and father dearly, even if they lied to him and kept him in the dark. They made a mistake, but he understands now that they did it out of love. Then there was Chuck, his annoying little brother. He would move heaven and earth for that boy, even if he would never just shut up. He grew up with Teresa and she’s been in his life since they were six. She was practically his sister and he doesn’t know what he would do without her. And he loved all of his great friends he had made here. 

And then there was Newt.

He had strong feelings for the blonde, but was it love? He couldn’t be too sure, but he definitely couldn’t see his future without Newt there. The blonde was filling up his heart, making a home in there. Thomas may not feel love right this second, but he definitely could see it happening very soon. 

Alby and Aris must have seen the calculating look on his face, so they spoke up. “We’re not saying you can’t love people Thomas.” Alby said.

“You just…” Aris sighed before he found the right words. “...you have to learn to let them go if you’re ever in a situation like the one you were just in.”

Thomas doesn’t think he could do that.

Suddenly, he felt the urge to see Newt. He needed to see him right now. They had plans to hang out at Newt’s later anyway, so Thomas excused himself from training for the day and headed back to his house. He planned to spend the night at Newt’s so he would just grab a pair of clothes and his toothbrush and a few things.

He said hey to Minho as he pulled out a duffel bag from the closet and started packing it. He packed his clothes, ran to the bathroom to grab his toothbrush and went to Newt’s.

* * *

 

Thomas knocked on the door and it opened to reveal a surprised yet pleased looking Newt. Obviously, he was expecting Thomas later in the day. “Tommy! What are you doing here so early?”

“Couldn’t wait to see you,” Thomas said, admiring that beautiful smile that belonged to Newt.

Newt let him in and he put down his bag. The two then shared a hug and Thomas pulled Newt in for a slow, delicate kiss. 

“What was that for?” Newt asked once he pulled away.

“Because I’m...just so crazy about you.” He didn’t want to say that ‘L’ word yet. Not unless he was totally sure. They’ve only been dating a couple of weeks - although he’s felt a strong connection with Newt since they first met - and he didn’t want to scare the blonde off. 

Newt smiled at that comment, but then scrunched his nose and sniffed. “Uh, Tommy? You stink.”

“Oh, yeah,” Thomas said sheepishly. “Aris and Alby were training with me and we used the pond water.”

“Well, you can take a shower if you want.”

That’d be a good idea. He didn’t want to stink up Newt’s place. So he gave the blonde a quick kiss and headed into the shower. He hurried as fast as he could and changed into his fresh clothes and went back out to Newt, who was making food for them.

“I hope you like ramen, because that’s all I got.”

“Sounds perfect,” Thomas said as he wrapped his arms around Newt from behind. 

“Did you remember to bring Star Wars?” Newt asked.

“Yeah, it’s in my bag.”

Newt sauntered over to the bag with glee and began searching for the movie while Thomas went to get himself a glass of water. Tonight would be good. Ramen, Star Wars, and Newt. What could go wrong?

“Uh, Tommy?”

Hearing his name, he turned around to face his boyfriend. “What’s up?”

Newt gestured to the inside of Thomas’s bag with an amused look on his face. Thomas walked over to the bag, curious to what Newt was getting at. When he did, he really wish he hadn’t.

_ “Oh my God!” _

Right inside the bag was the lube and condoms Minho gave him. 

Minho must have snuck them in there when he went to the bathroom! How did Thomas not notice that? 

“Newt, it’s not what you think! Minho gave them to me! I wasn’t planning on anything other than the movie, I swear! I don’t want sex! I mean, not that I don’t want to have sex with you or anything! I - ”

A pair of lips meeting his own cut Thomas off from rambling anymore nonsense. He closed his eyes at the contact, letting out a quiet moan from the pleasure.

Newt pulled away and chuckled. “You’re cute when you’re freaking out, y’know that?”

“I’m gonna kill Minho,” Thomas mumbled. “He did it to be funny. I bet he was probably laughing his ass off when he put them in there.”

Newt looked Thomas over for a minute, seeming a bit nervous yet confidant at the same time. Did Minho’s joke ruin the night? No, please no. Everything was fine!

But then Newt spoke up. “I mean...if we used them, the joke would be on Minho, right?”

…

Did Newt just say that?

“Uh...what?” Wow.  _ Smooth  _ Thomas.

Newt’s cocky demeanor began to crumble. He hesitantly began to back away from the brunette and ran a hand through his hair. “Um...we could...y’know...if you want…”

Great. Thomas being all weird made Newt get uncomfortable and nervous. But was Newt suggesting that the two have sex? Because yeah, Thomas wants to be with Newt, but not because the blonde feels like he has to. And judging by how weird he’s being, he definitely doesn’t want to.

“Newt, we don’t have to do anything you’re uncomfortable with.”

“I know, Tommy. That's not...it’s just...I’ve never done it.”

_ Oh _ . 

Newt’s a virgin.

Newt got close to Thomas and put his arms around his neck. He leaned in for a slow, soft kiss that caused Thomas to melt right there. Newt pulled away and leaned his forehead against Thomas’s, eyes still closed. “Tommy,” Newt whispered. “I want to. Please.”

* * *

 

Later that night, the two boys were cuddling in Newt’s bed while watching Star Wars. Thomas was in absolute bliss. Even though it wasn’t his first time, it was like nothing compared to the others. Being with Newt was almost magical. It wasn’t just two people having sex to pleasure themselves. It was two people who had very strong feelings for each other that wanted to be as close to each other as they could. It was two people making love.

Thomas knew now what he felt for Newt. Maybe it was crazy because they’ve only known each other for a few months, but what Thomas feels is real. And he has to say it.

“Newt?”

“Yeah Tommy?” the blonde says as he looks at Thomas.

“‘I love you.”

The words just came out on their own. It wasn’t forced. It wasn’t a lie. This was real. His love for Newt was real.

Newt seemed taken aback by this declaration, but his confused frown curled into a soft, warm smile. “I love you too.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> finals are coming up, so i probably wont get another chapter up until next friday.  
> also if i havent said it before, happy holidays to all!!!!


	14. Breath of Cold Air

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> didn't even check this over for mistakes tbh

The first few snowflakes of the winter began to fall early in the morning, and by the time Thomas woke up, there was at least five inches on the ground. He rolled out of his bed, waking up Newt in the process - yes, Newt slept over! - and yelled for him and Minho to get dressed. The brunette was giddy with excitement as he finished dressing and proceeded to run around the house waking everyone else up. Then he went outside and felt the cool air brush against face. He listened to the peaceful silence that filled the frosty air.

It wasn’t long until Teresa came out, letting out a pleased sigh as she closed her eyes. The others came out as well, Newt borrowing some of Thomas’s clothes since he didn’t have any clothes to change into - and besides, Newt in Thomas’s clothes? That was a beautiful sight.

The snowflakes were sticking to the few hairs that were escaping the blonde’s beanie, his nose and cheeks were going red, but he was smiling like a little kid as he watched the snowflakes fall to the ground. Everything in this moment was peaceful.

Until Minho started a snowball fight.

Afterwards, they had a competition on who could make the best snowman. Minho’s wouldn’t stand up on it’s own, Harriet’s was a little misshapen, and Thomas couldn’t even make one. Aris’s came out the best - maybe he bended the water in the snow? Thomas would have to learn if he could do that too.

Thomas and Newt may have also snuck away from everyone else to lay in the snow and make out for ten minutes.

Later on, they were all changed and cuddling under blankets in the living room, trying to get warmed up in front of the fireplace. Each had a mug of hot chocolate, cuddling up to someone to get warm. Thomas securely wrapped him and Newt inside a large fluffy blanket to keep the blonde as close to him as possible.

Sonya put on some holiday music, as Christmas was a week away. Their friends decided to have a little Christmas of their own here at the house tonight, as they were heading home tomorrow. Thomas got Newt to come back to his house again - Sonya wanted to spend the holiday with Harriet, so she wouldn’t be joining them -  and was excited to spend Christmas with his boyfriend. The one thing he was dreading, however, was telling his family that Newt was his boyfriend. Not that he was ashamed of Newt in any way, but because of how they would be so embarrassing about it. Thomas would rather do it in person than over the phone, so when he called to ask if Newt can come, he left out the boyfriend part. But when he tells them, he will probably get an “I told you so” from his mother.

The friends decided on doing a Secret Santa, so not everyone had to buy too many gifts. Unfortunately, Thomas got Harriet instead of Newt. But he bought Harriet a really nice scarf she mentioned she wanted during one of their trips into the city. And he also bought Newt gifts as well anyway. What kind of boyfriend would he be if he didn’t? But Newt could open those on Christmas morning. Thomas couldn’t wait to spend the holiday with him.

Although, every morning with Newt felt like Christmas morning.

* * *

 

The whole car ride home from the train station, his mother was giving Thomas a look. Not just any look. _The_ look. The _“I can tell there is something you aren’t telling us and I definitely know what it is”_ kind of look. It made Thomas uneasy the whole way home.

When they got there, Thomas and Newt unpacked in the brunette’s room, and then Thomas was dreading having the talk with his parents. He’d spare Newt the embarrassment and tell them alone.

So he told Newt he’d be right back and headed downstairs into the kitchen where his mother was preparing dinner. Okay, just rip off the band aid. “Mom?”

“Yes Thomas?” Mary answered as she turned around from the stove.

“So uh...remember the talk we had when I came home for Thanksgiving?”

“You mean the one where I mentioned how you were drooling after Newt? Yeah, I remember,” his mother teased. “Why?”

Judging by the smirk on her face, he knew she knew the answer to that. But she wouldn’t say anything about it until Thomas did. That was one of her greatest qualities. Even though she knew something, she would wait until the person was ready to voice it. She never pushed Thomas, she always let him come to her first.

“Well...we’re..kinda sorta...well, dating.”

Her smirk transformed into a huge smile, and she squealed and ran to embrace her son in a tight hug. “My boy has a boyfriend!” she yelled, loud enough for his father to hear and walk in.

“So you finally made a move huh?” his dad joked.

“I guess so,” Thomas chuckled. He was glad his parents reacted so well. Other parents might question him about his sexuality, seeing as he already had a girlfriend before. Luckily, his parents were open minded and non-judgemental people.

“Now, I know you’re both teenagers and _boys_ ,” Mary started, breaking out of the hug. “So obviously you’re going to want to have sex. Since you’re both boys you have to be a bit more cautious.  If you need condoms or books or something - ”

“Mom!” Thomas yelled, face heating up and going red. He was _not_ going to have the sex conversation with his mother. Again. Especially since his boyfriend was right upstairs.

“Sorry, sorry. It’s another half hour until dinner, so I’ll call you when it’s ready.”

He immediately walked out of the kitchen and started to head back to Newt. Thomas loved his parents dearly, but they could not be more embarrassing.

“Keep the door open Thomas!” Mary yelled.

“Why? That never stopped me as a kid,” Vince said. “And in case you forgot, it’s not like their gonna accidentally give us grandchildren.”

Never mind. They could be _way_ more embarrassing.

* * *

 

The days went by fast. Thomas’s parents were being as embarrassing as always. His mom started going through their family photo albums with Newt, who was laughing and giggling at all of the horrible photos of a much younger Thomas. Him on the baseball team with a buzz cut, acne, and braces. Just what he wanted Newt to see. But the blonde seemed to be enjoying himself. “Aw, Tommy! You were so bloody adorable!” he exclaimed with a huge grin.

Okay, maybe that wasn’t too bad. Newt made up for it later that night anyway. _Twice._

His parents also asked Newt a bunch of questions about how they started dating and when they figured it out - being embarrassing again, as always, but in a sweet sincere way - and about about his personal life, if it was difficult for him to come out, how he and his sister were both gay, and Thomas decided it would be best to get Newt out of the house. So he took Newt around his hometown, showing him the park he used to play at when he was a kid or the baseball field where he, Chuck, and his dad could spend hours playing.

* * *

 

Now it was Christmas morning, and everyone  rushed down in front of the tree full of presents. Chuck immediately dug in to the biggest one that was for him, which was a new scooter - Thomas’s suggestion, since he knows what Chuck likes the best. Newt even got some small gifts for Chuck and his in-laws - he was invited last minute, after all.

Thomas handed Newt his gift - well, technically gifts - and surprise surprise, Newt got him a gift as well. “Open mine first,” Thomas said.

It was really hard to pick out something for Newt at first. Thomas couldn’t exactly just stroll into a random store at the mall and find a gift for him. It took a while, but Thomas took a risk and went for it. He bought Newt a book of classical and contemporary piano pieces, a new sketchbook to draw in, some art supplies, and a murder mystery book he remembered Newt telling him he wanted to buy one night while they were in bed.

What Thomas really wanted to do for Newt was to see if his mom could reverse what Newt had done to his parents. He asked her about it one night before he returned home, but Thomas had no idea where they were or how to find them, and he didn’t want to ask Newt about it; Thomas didn’t want him to have to think about that. But his mom said that it might not even work. She could heal wounds, but she never tried to heal a mind before. Thomas was upset about that for a few days, but it was just a thought.

“Tommy…” Newt said ever so softly as he gazed over his gifts, then met Thomas’s eyes. “You shouldn’t have. It’s too much!”

“Well, you’re worth it.”

Thomas’s heart swelled when he saw Newt beam at his answer. If his parents and Chuck weren’t right behind them, he would kiss the blonde.

“Well, now my gift is going to seem totally lame now,” Newt pouted.

“No it won’t,” Thomas assured.

Thomas was opening Newt’s gift. He pulled the present of out the bag and slowly unwrapped it to find a drawing. Not just any drawing. Newt drew this. And it was of Thomas, sitting under a tree in a garden. It was so detailed and realistic that it was almost scary. “Newt,” Thomas breathed out. “I love it.”

“Really?”

“Yes really!” Thomas never received such an original, organic, and personal gift before. While some may think it’s ‘just a drawing’, it meant so much more than that to Thomas. That was their spot. Well, one of their spots, at least, but probably their favorite spot.

“There’s one more thing in there,” Newt informed him.

Thomas peered back down and he was right. He didn’t know what to expect, but he definitely wasn’t expecting to find a bracelet in there. Curious, he pulled it out and rested it in the palm of his hand. It was made of tiny stones. Seven of them were the colors of the rainbow, while the rest of them were black. And on the opposite side of the colorful stones was a large black crystal. Thomas thinks he’s seen it before, but isn’t actually sure.

“Newt, this is beautiful,” Thomas said as he admired the gift. “But what’s it for?”

“I know you were stressing about Sonya’s vision, so I figured this would help you relax,” Newt explained. “Each of the colored stones is for the seven chakras, to help you with your powers, and the crystal is black obsidian. It’s supposed to protect you from ill fortune.”

Newt never ceases to amaze Thomas. He can’t believe how much thought Newt put into his gifts. They were so intimate and unique. And the fact that Newt knew all of this cool stuff Thomas has yet to understand only deepened his love for the blonde. He put the bracelet on and admired how it looked on his wrist.

Not caring about his family in the room anymore, he leaned into Newt and let their lips connect. He was able to ignore his mother’s cooing, his dad awkwardly clearing his throat, and Chuck’s fake gagging because the rest of the world didn’t exist when he was kissing Newt.

* * *

 

Now they were back at the school to celebrate New Year’s Eve. Since Newt didn’t want to not see Sonya, he and Thomas decided to spend New Year’s back at the school with the rest of their friends. Mary made the both of them to promise to come back and visit whenever they could. Newt got along quite well with his family. He was glad to see his boyfriend bond so well with them. In fact, sometimes it felt like they would rather Newt would come home than Thomas.

The night was great. Sonya kept taking pictures of everyone with her new polaroid camera Harriet had bought her, Minho was dancing like a moron, and Newt was...well _Newt_. He's always great.

“Thirty seconds!” Brenda yelled as everyone scrambled in front of the television.

Newt grabbed Thomas’s hand and lead him a bit closer to everyone. All around the room, people were gathering in pairs to kiss someone. This is actually Thomas’s first kiss on New Years Eve - he never dated anyone around the holidays, so he’s always spent them with family - and it was probably Newt’s first time too.

The seconds flew by, and before he knew it, everyone was cheering and kissing someone to celebrate the start of a new year. Thomas and Newt found each other instantly, connecting their lips in such a tender sweet moment. A brand new year with new powers, awesome friends, and a fantastic boyfriend. What more could he want?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so this is pretty much the last chapter with only fluff. from now on, its gonna slowly get more intense and angsty.  
> AND THIS IS THE HALFWAY POINT!!!! (this is about 28 chapters) thanks for sticking with me for so long!!  
> hope you all have/had a wonderful holiday!!! <3


	15. Earth Rising

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> happy new year!!

He was half awake, basking in the warmth of the body that was in his bed with him. It was a peaceful moment of silence, with the exception of Newt’s light snoring, but Thomas didn’t mind that.

What he did mind, though, was Brenda barging in without knocking like she owned the place. “Rise and shine, lover boys! Thomas, training starts in fifteen minutes.”

Oh, yeah. Today was the beginning of Thomas’s earth bending training with Brenda. He briefly had a lesson with Ava about it the other day, but today he would actually try to move earth. If Alby and Aris were tough teachers, he could only imagine how hard it was going to be with her.

“Keep it down, you’re gonna wake up Newt,” Thomas said groggily. He was still half asleep, and he preferred if Brenda didn’t wake up his boyfriend.

“Then you shouldn’t have had a sleepover,” she retorted. She then proceeded to pick up Thomas’s clothes on the floor - not missing the fact that Newt’s were also on the floor, as she gave Thomas a playful smirk when she saw them - and threw them at Thomas. “Get dressed, we start in ten minutes.”

“I thought you said fifteen!” Thomas complained as the girl began to exit the room.

“It was. Now it’s ten. Don’t make me say five.”

She then proceeded to slam the door shut, causing the blonde next to Thomas begin to stir. He slowly blinked open his eyes in the most adorable way, and formed a small tired smile when his eyes met Thomas’s. “What are you staring at?” he asked above a whisper.

“My adorable naked boyfriend who I have to leave to go train,” Thomas said as he rolled out of bed, beginning to get dressed.

“Do you have time for breakfast?” Newt asked as he buried himself further into the blankets.

“No, sorry. How about a late lunch?”

“Works for me, I get to go back to sleep,” Newt mused. “Good luck today.”

Thomas chuckled at how cute he looked, wrapped up like a burrito. He placed a quick kiss on Newt’s forehead, opted to skip breakfast, and went in search for Brenda. Turns out, he didn’t have to look far, because once he stepped outside, he was knocked down to the ground by a large rock. And that rock could have only come from one person.

Sure enough, when he stood up and turned around, there was Brenda with a stern look on her face. “Tomorrow, I expect you to be more prepared. Training with me isn’t going to be like with the others. When you’re early, you’re  on time. When you’re on time, you’re late. I want you to train every day this week for a minimum of four hours, and it’s going to be rough. Got it?”

Thomas nodded - although he wanted to argue why she threw a rock at him rather than telling him, but odds are she would just launch another one in his direction - and followed her to other side of the campus, where there would be nobody to bother them.

His first lesson was to work on his quake technique. “Now,” Brenda began.  “What you are going to do is create vibrations in the ground. I know it doesn’t sound that cool, but if you think about it, it actually is. That is what earthquakes are: vibrations. We’re just making one on a much smaller scale.”

Thomas isn’t going to lie, that does sound pretty cool. “Okay, what do I do first?”  
“Being with projecting your chi out of your foot, and into the ground below you. You want to put your chi a few inches under the ground. Stand like this,” she commanded, putting herself into the right stance.

Thomas mirrored her movements and replayed her instructions in his head over again.  
“The next thing is to spread your chi out to make a perimeter around you. Whatever the radius of your perimeter is, that will be the range of the earthquake.”

Thomas followed her orders, spreading his chi just like she told him to. It felt odd, yet somehow right. Like he was meant to be doing this.

“Once you’ve done that, build up chi in your other leg, then stomp your foot and release this chi. As you stomp your foot, thrust your fists towards the ground.” Brenda finished her demonstration by creating a small yet powerful earthquake. Thomas immediately followed, his nowhere near as strong, but he still managed to do it.  
“Wow...I can’t believe I did it already.”

“Exemplars can master the elements faster than normal benders,” Brenda informed. “Now do it again until it’s perfect. Then we’ll move on.”

So he did. Then he did it again. Over and over again. Then he did it some more. He looked at Brenda for confirmation, and she shook her head.

This is going to be a  _long_ day.

* * *

 

He supposed he should be slightly annoyed by Alby’s sudden craving for the Homestead, but Newt loves this place too much to complain about getting lunch with his best friend. It seemed a bit abrupt, but Thomas - who he was supposed to have lunch with - was still training so it’s not like Newt had anything better to do anyway. At least this way, the time would pass quicker.

As they were walking into the restaurant, they were met with Frypan and Winston. Alby invited the pair to join them, and they were seated at a table moments later. They weren’t the closest of friends, but the two were good company.

“So Newt, where’s your boyfriend?” Winston asked. “I’m surprised not to see you two away from one another.”

“He’s training with Brenda right now,” Newt informed as he looked through his menu.

“With Brenda?” Frypan asked. “Why is he training with Brenda?”

“She’s teaching him earth bending,” Ably explained. “Thomas is an Exemplar.”

Frypan and Winston seemed completely shocked by this revelation. Actually, shocked didn’t seem the most accurate word. More like, intrigued.

“Really?” Winston asked, but something about the way he drawled it out made Newt a little uneasy. It was kind of shady.

“Yeah. Is that a problem?” Newt asked.

“No, not at all. Just surprised is all,” Winston defended.

Newt didn’t fail to notice the strange look that was shared between the two across the table from him. Something felt off.

* * *

 

“Hold on, what?”

Minho made the mistake deciding to see what the girls were up to today. He knew Aris had one class today, and Alby took Newt somewhere, but he didn’t know it was to keep Newt out of the house. When he walked in, he saw Harriet, Sonya, and Teresa with a bunch of old dusty boxes scattered around Harriet and Teresa’s room. Each of them were searching through their own box trying to find Sonya’s old diary.

“Ever since I met Thomas in the cafeteria, I knew that wasn’t the first time I had seen him” Sonya explained as she was digging through the box in front of her. “I recognized him somehow, yet I couldn’t recall how I knew. So I let it go, thinking it was nothing serious. But after that last dream I had of him and Newt, I tried so hard to remember how I knew him, but I can’t. And remember the Halloween incident? I had that really bad vision too. And when I was by Harriet’s while we were away, I had another dream. I saw lightning, a person falling, and giant black clouds or fog or something. Something bad is coming, Minho. Last night, Harriet suggested we go into the storage unit where Newt and I have some things from our house and look for my old diary. I didn’t write all my dreams down, but I’m hoping there’s one that will mention Thomas.”

“Sonya doesn’t want Newt to find out, so we’re in a rush. If you wanna grab a box and help out, that’d be great,” Harriet said, although it came out more like a command.

So Minho grabbed a box in the corner of the room and started scrounging through it. He didn’t find a diary, but he found a few nice things. A polaroid of a young Newt, Sonya, and their parents outside their home in London. On the back, it said  _‘First day in our new home!’_  in fancy writing. He smiled at the photograph, but it quickly faded, reminding him of the twin’s lost family. The boring normal life that none of them had a chance at.

There was one of Newt’s old sketchbooks in there too, but Minho knew better than to invade Newt’s privacy like that. Newt  _hated_ when people looked at his drawings without his permission. And Minho learned that the hard way when Newt flung him into a wall for looking through it when he thought Newt wasn’t around.

“I think I found them!” Teresa yelled.

Everyone’s attention turned to the dark haired girl and Sonya immediately grabbed one of the books and started flipping through the pages, rushing through each one as fast as she could. Minho thought there was no way she could look through it so quickly and find out what she was looking for. And why did someone have  _seven_ journals? “How many shuckin dreams can one person have?”

“Shit guys, Alby texted me that they’re coming back,” Harriet informed.

“Okay, I’ll look through them later,” the blonde girl said. “We gotta get these boxes out of here.”

“You really should talk to Ava about this you know. She might know what to do.”

“Minho, I’m not going to her until I know more. Otherwise, it’ll just worry everyone. So in the meantime, everyone has to keep this quiet. Okay?”

The group all agreed, albeit reluctantly, but agreed nonetheless.

* * *

 

Thomas finally managed to make it back home - Brenda trained him harder and longer than she originally said - and all he wanted to do was  shower, eat, see Newt, and sleep. He made his way upstairs as fast as he could, which wasn’t very fast at all considering how exhausted he was. He might end up having to crawl to Newt’s room later. He collapsed on the stairs, his face meeting with one of the steps. Hard. But he was too exhausted to care.

“Uh, Thomas?” he heard Minho call from the top of the steps.

“Yeah?” he asked, his voice muffled.

“You need some help?”

“Assistance would be appreciated, yes.”

Thank God Minho was strong as hell. He practically hauled Thomas into the bathroom so the brunette could shower, but all he ended up doing was sitting on the shower floor as the water ran over him.

Fifteen minutes later - it took him a while to get up - he made his way to his bedroom to see Newt there, who had undone Thomas’s bed, put out fresh clothes for him to change into, and a tray of food on his nightstand. “Newt? When did you get here?”

“Hey Tommy,” his boyfriend greeted. “Minho told me you were practically dead, so I thought I’d come here instead and check on you. Come here,” Newt said as he pulled Thomas over to the bed. “Sit. Get dressed. I made you some dinner.”

“Ramen again?”

“I’m not Gordon Ramsay, Thomas.”

“I know, I know. Thanks, Newt.”

Thomas, although completely drained, made sure to put all the sincerity he could muster into his gratitude. The blonde seemed to have gotten the message, as leaned down and shared a soft delicate kiss with the brunette.

Newt helped dress Thomas - yes, he was that tired - ate his dinner in a slow manner, and Newt helped him under the covers. “You staying over?” he asked from underneath the blankets.

“Minho might get mad we keep kicking him out of his room,” Newt teased.

“Please?” Thomas asked sweetly and high pitched, like a child begging his mother for a piece of candy.

“You don’t have to go all doe-eyed on me, I was bloody stayin’ anyway.”

Newt climbed into bed with him, pushing Thomas to lie on his stomach and seat himself upon him. Thomas groaned in pleasure as Newt’s hands began to massage the aches out of him. It hurt but it was wonderful.

A bit too wonderful, in fact. He tried to discretely readjust himself and not think about Newt's hand on his body but he was failing hard.

And it got even worse when Newt left the ghost of a kiss against the back of his neck. "Someone's getting excited," Newt mused.

Thomas groaned in embarrassment. The Newt pressed his lips to his neck again, kissing a trail down to his shoulders. "Newt? What are you doing?"  
"Trying to make you feel better," Newt spoke lowly in a seductive tone.

“You’re going to be the death of me Newton Ross.”

Thomas really did have the best boyfriend ever.

* * *

 

“So she just disappeared?”

Ava was currently meeting with the parents of a young Bethany Smith, Mark and Trina - both former heroes who had retired and relocated with new identities. Their daughter had gone missing a two weeks ago. Normally, Ava wouldn’t be involved in such things, but Bethany was a gifted individual, and a few have gone missing over the years, including a few former students at her academy.

It wasn’t uncommon for some of the normal population to hate on powered people. At times, they would even get violent against them, blaming them for the world’s problems when they were actually trying to help.

“The police think she was taken while she was walking home from school,” her mother said. “She was seen in a convenience store buying a soda around three o'clock, but nothing after that.”

“We were hoping you would have some way to help find her,” the father added.

“What was her gift?”

“Divination.”

Ava is surprised it isn’t a more powerful or unprecedented gift. Why would someone want to take her for her power? Even so, Ava would definitely do whatever she could to help.

“It hasn’t only been her taken, Ava. We’re well aware that about a dozen of kids were taken,” Mark stated. “You think WCKD is back?”

Her first guess was that WCKD had resurfaced, but there was never any evidence to prove it. They had hidden themselves so well that it was impossible to find any trace back to them. But if they had returned, it wasn’t good. And all of the poor children were unable to be found.

“I’ll contact the Hero Legion and inform them of the situation and I’ll see what can be done.”

“Please,” the Trina begged. “Find our little girl. Bring her home.”

Ava hopes she can do just that.


	16. A Storm is Brewing

A young fair skinned girl with brown hair was sitting in the corner of the dark, windowless room. Her arms were chained to a pipe, and she was barely alive. Starved, dehydrated, beaten. But Beth wouldn’t give her captors what they wanted. Never.

A way too loud creaking of the door startled her, followed by a blinding light. A silhouette was standing in the doorway, and she knew who it was. The tall, muscular, dirty blonde haired boy again, the one who could control fire. Everyday for - how long has she been here? Weeks? Months? - one of the kidnappers came in and beat her, questioned her, and gave her scarce amounts of food and water, just enough to keep her alive and suffering. She swore she would never give in, but she can slowly feel herself reaching the breaking point.

“Are you going to give us what we want?” the boy asked. “Or am I gonna have to teach you another lesson?”

She couldn’t. She knows they want something bad. Her parents warned her about people like this. She can’t give in, even if it means losing her life.

“Hmm…maybe we’ve approached this wrong. Maybe you need a meeting with Lawrence.”

The boy turned on his heels and proceeded to peer out into the doorway. “Rachel! Get Lawrence. I think our little friend here needs a bit more persuasion.”

“Sure thing Ben,” Rachel’s voice was heard outside the door.

“I’ll never help you,” Beth spat. “Never. You’re monsters.”

“Oh, I think you might come around,” Ben grinned.

A few moments later and a figure wearing a black cloak, hood over his head, crept into the room slowly and menacingly. She could barely see his face, but she didn't fail to see the lack of a nose and pure eyes of darkness staring right at her.

“Don’t worry girl,” his low raspy voice said as he removed his hood, revealing the atrocity that was lying beneath. The entire right side of his face was covered in deformities, seeping down to below his neckline. His hair was messy and ragged, and there wasn’t a single trace of humanity left to him.  “This won’t hurt a bit.” The man raised his arms, his palms extended facing Beth. “Actually, you won’t feel a thing.”

Slowly, black fog began to appear from his hands like magic. It slowly made its way towards her, surrounding her completely. She let out a terrified scream, but it was muffled once she was completely lost in the dark mist.

* * *

 

It’s been about three weeks of training with Brenda, and Thomas was pretty good at earth bending. He was by no means a master yet, but he was definitely getting close to Brenda’s level. She was definitely irritated that it took Thomas only a few weeks while it took her a couple of years, and she wasn’t afraid to show it when they were practicing. Like when she would send a rock his way with more force than necessary or make the ground shake while he walked so he would trip.

Besides that, things were going great. Thomas and Newt went on double dates with Sonya and Harriet a couple of times, Thomas loving to see the blonde siblings bicker with one another. Minho started going over some pre-training methods before he would start learning fire bending. And now his family were here in Glade city for a few days to spend some time with him.  Actually, it seemed like they’d rather spend time with Newt, being as they’ve basically ignored Thomas the whole time they’ve arrived at The Homestead. Sometimes Thomas wonders if they would rather have had Newt as their son instead.

“So, Newt. What are your plans after you leave Ava’s school?” Vince asked as they were seated in their booth.

Newt seemed taken aback at the question. “I uh...honestly, I haven’t even given that a lot of thought.”

“How come?” Mary asked. “It’s not like you’ll be there forever.”

“But I don’t plan on leaving any time soon.”

“Why is that?” Vince asked. “The Legion would definitely benefit with having someone as powerful as you working with them. I mean, Chaos Magic. Imagine what you could do-”

“Guys, come on,” Thomas interfered, grabbing his boyfriend’s hand under the table. Thomas knew that the conversation was making Newt anxious.  “Can we talk about something else?”

“I was just curious is all,” Vince explained. “If you’d ever like to join, just let me know. I still have connections.”

Newt offered a nod to Vince, but didn’t provide an answer. Thomas knows Newt’s answer to that. They’ve briefly talked about that before. Newt doesn’t think he can protect anyone because his powers are too dangerous, yet he also feels like he can’t live a normal life. He’s stuck at a crossroad unsure of which path to take. Thomas was working with Newt so he wasn’t afraid of his abilities anymore, and they were making some progress. But Newt just needs a little more time.

“Can I join too, dad?” Chuck asked. Luckily Thomas’s younger sibling always had a way of easing any bit of tension and changing the subject.

“Of course kiddo,” his father said as she ruffled the boy’s hair.

Thankfully, the rest of the dinner went by smoothly. His parents told more embarrassing stories about his childhood which left Newt laughing hysterically and Thomas burning red with embarrassment. And the two boyfriends hadn’t let go of each other’s hands throughout the rest of the time they were there.

* * *

 

“Are you sure it’s him?”

Sonya had made it her mission to figure out if Thomas had been in her dreams or not before. And it was hard to narrow it down, being that when she first started recording her dreams, she wasn’t too descriptive. But she thinks she managed to find it. Teresa was just praying she was wrong.

“It has to be.”

“Read it again,” Harriet said.

“There was a city ablaze. People were running and screaming. An older looking man with the face of a rat was smirking. A brown haired boy trying to save them all,” Sonya read from the page. “Then the boy dies.”

“That could be anyone,” Brenda informed.

“But in the corner, I wrote that this boy had moles on his face. Thomas has moles on the side of his face.”

Teresa still didn’t want to believe it. A lot of people had moles on their face. A lot of people had brown hair. It wasn’t Thomas. It couldn’t be.

“But you had a dream of Thomas recently,” Harriet said as she moved over to her girlfriend. “He and Newt were fighting. That was different from this.”

“So maybe they’re related,” Sonya concluded.

“Or maybe they’re not,” Brenda deduced.

“Stop.”

Teresa couldn’t handle thinking about her best friend dying. The boy she had known since she was five. The boy who was practically her brother. He can’t die. She won’t let him. “We won’t jump to any conclusions. All we know for sure is that at some point, Thomas and Newt will get attacked by who knows what. That’s what we need to focus on. Sonya, is there anything else from that dream? Something that can maybe help pinpoint when it might happen? Or where? Anything? ”

Sonya reached over to her most recent dream journal and skimmed to the page she was looking for. She was reading over her words carefully, trying to remember the dream in her head. “I don’t think so. I just remember seeing the explosion and Newt and Thomas.”

“But you mentioned others might be there too,” Harriet added.

“Yeah...but I’m not so sure.”

“What do you mean?” Brenda asked.

“I mean, I don’t know for sure if I saw other people. I just saw this dark figure standing nearby. I just assumed it was someone.”

“And you didn’t see their face?”

“No.”

 _Damn it._ So now they were just expected to wait for Thomas and Newt to get hurt? Teresa won’t just stand by and let that happen. There has to be something they could do to prevent it from happening.

The girls concluded that they won’t tell anyone about their discovery today. At some point, and very soon, they would have to at least tell Ava. As hard as it is not to run and tell her in this moment, Teresa knows it will end with people constantly worrying and looking over their shoulders for an incoming threat. Thomas especially didn’t need to know about the other dream. At least Ava might be able to set up a few precautions to avoid any danger.

But then Teresa remembered what Newt had told everyone about Sonya’s visions: they can happen at anytime in the future.

And no matter what, they _will_ come true.

* * *

 

Rather than drop Thomas and Newt back off at their school, his parents decided to treat them to a movie as well. It was hard finding one for all of them since Chuck was there and his mother didn’t want him to see anything scary or inappropriate, but they all managed to find one suitable for all of them.

Thomas was holding Newt’s hand walking over to the concession stand when his mother grabbed him by the arm. “Vince, why don’t you, Newt, and Chuck save us some seats? Thomas and I will grab the snacks.”

Vince nodded - with that certain look he and Mary always gave one another when they had to talk to Thomas or Chuck alone - and took the two boys with him. Newt was just as confused but he went with them anyway. Thomas turned to his mother with a questioning look on his face. “What’s going on?”

“I did some research like you asked and found the institution where Newt’s parents were moved to.”

“And?” Could she heal them? Can Newt get his family back?

Judging by the solemn look on his mother’s face, the news wasn’t good. “They’re condition has only gotten worse. They’ve both been moved in to solitary, and I don’t think I would be able to help them Thomas. I’m sorry.”

Thomas sighed. “Well, it was just a thought.” Luckily he didn’t tell Newt about it. He would have hated to get the blonde’s hopes up. But Thomas was still deeply saddened that he couldn’t help his boyfriend’s parents.

“That’s not all I found out,” Mary informed. “Newt’s last name is Ross, right?”

“Yeah.”

“His original birth name is Isaacs. So is Sonya’s. The Ross’s adopted the two of them.”

Newt and Sonya were adopted? Did they know that? Their adoptive parents didn’t have any powers - it wasn't uncommon that not every family member had powers, sometimes skipping a generation - so maybe the thought had crossed their minds before.

“So where are they’re birth parents?”

“Remember the story I told you about the attack on Denver? They were there too. Your father and I were acquainted with them. They were killed during the fight. I knew they had children, but I didn’t know what happened to them after they had died. The Legion made sure to keep the records confidential from everyone except a handful of people to keep the kids safe.”

Thomas’s heart sank. Newt and Sonya already had enough of a troubled past, and now it turns out their birth parents are dead. Two of the best people he has ever met didn’t deserve so much tragedy in their lives.

* * *

 

“So Newt,” Vince said as they sat in their seats, leaving space for Thomas and Mary, “I realized I never asked before, but do you know the source of your magic?”

“I was born with it?”

“Well, yes. You were,” Vince nodded. “But I mean, the true source.”

Newt shook his head. He just thought everyone’s powers were given to them at birth. He knew there was some design to them, everyone having a power that cancelled out one another or being two that were connected in some way, like a yin to a yang. Water and fire, light manipulation and shadow manipulation. “I don’t believe I do, no.”

Vince smiled at the boy. “Next time you’re with Thomas, try to connect your magic with his gem. See what happens.”

“What do you mean connect it? How-”

“Sorry we took so long boys,” Mary cut in, her and Thomas returning with hands filled with snacks.

Thomas took the empty sit between Newt and Chuck while Mary took the seat beside her husband. Thomas immediately reached out for Newt’s hand and began to trace circles with his thumb. Newt smiled, decided to put his questions away and just enjoy a simple movie with his boyfriend and his family.

* * *

 

What was once a tall, functioning factory was now a withered down building left to rot. Old broken boxes lay scattered, windows vandalised leaving shards of glass on the cold floor, and the creeping feeling of total isolation.

Frypan grimaced as he took a step into the large complex, his resounding footsteps echoing as they hit the cement floor. “Great meeting place to pick Winston,” he whispered. “Couldn’t have picked a warm restaurant or something. No, had to be a cold empty warehouse.”

“Shut up Frypan. It was discreet and no one is ever here.”

“About time you guys got here!” a girl’s voice called.

The two boys were met with Miyoko, an Asian girl with wavy black hair, and George, a tan skinned man with slightly lighter hair than his accompaniment. “What was so important that you had to meet?”

“We did it,” Winston grinned. “We found him.”

“You did?” Miyoko asked. “Then why aren’t you telling Janson?’

“We have an idea.”

“What is it?” George asked.

“We don’t tell Janson yet. Rather, we get the Exemplar first and then bring him to Janson. This way we can show him just how great we are, get him to see what we're capable of.”

“Won’t it be risky fighting an Exemplar?”

“Nah,” Winston assured George. “He’s still learning. If we get enough of us to corner him, it’ll be a piece of cake.”

“It’ll take a lot of planning but we can do this,” Frypan stated. “We take Ben and Rachel with us too. We could use them. But we have to wait a while. Winston and I will keep tabs on him, see when we can get him alone.”

“But we’re definitely going after him?”

“Yeah,” Winston declared. “Let’s get ourselves an Exemplar.”

* * *

 

After the movie, when Newt and Thomas got back to Thomas’s room - Minho was staying at Brenda’s -  the two were getting into bed when Thomas pulled Newt flushed against him, their noses brushing against each other. The blonde chuckled at this. “Everything okay?”

“Yeah. I just...I love you so much.”

Newt smiled and pecked Thomas on the lips. “And I love you too.”

Thomas knows Newt deserves to hear the truth. But not tonight. Tonight, he just wanted to hold him close and just stare at Newt’s face beautifully illuminated by the blue light -

Wait, what?

Thomas and Newt both looked down and saw the gem in his medallion was glowing. “Tommy, what’s going on?”

“I’m not sure.”

And now he felt uneasy. His heart began to pound, he started taking quick rapid breaths, a chill was going down his spine, almost like a storm was brewing in his chest. It was the same feeling he had right before Aris and Alby had surprised attacked him that time, only much worse. It was like the gem was speaking to him, warning him. He tried to shut it out, holding onto Newt and grasping onto the bracelet the blonde had given him, hoping the feeling would pass.

Newt brought a hand over the gem and connected his magic to it. Thomas was about to ask what he was doing, but something weird happened. Thomas could feel Newt. He could literally feel him inside of him, coursing through his veins, in his heart. It eased away the eerie feeling he had and the light from the gem began to fade.

“What do you feel?” Thomas asked.

Newt had the most wondrous expression on his face. He was clearly concentrating on his magic, but he couldn’t hide his sense of fascination. The gem had stopped glowing and Newt withdrew his palm, stopping the flow of his magic. Newt put a hand on the brunette’s cheek and grabbed his hand with the other, and smiled softly.  

“I just feel you.”


	17. Flameheart

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> happy (or not so happy) one year anniversary of the death cure!!!!

Numb. She felt totally numb. She wasn’t dead, but she definitely wasn’t alive either. She was just...existing. The only thing she knew was eternal darkness. No fear, no pain, nothing.

What was happening? Where was she? Why was this happening to her? She knew none of the answers to the many questions rambling in her head.

Beth was trying to reach for something, anything, but nothing could be found. She was lost in a sinister void with no way to escape. The silence was deafening, the darkness blinding. She knew she should be afraid, but the fear would not present itself.

Slowly, a faint light became visible, and Beth began to regain feeling once again. She still felt as if she couldn’t move, but it was definitely improvement. Sound began to fill her ears again. She caught a slight scent of the grim room she knew she was being held prisoner in.

But when she came to, she wasn’t herself.

“I trust that you will now cooperate,” the ugly deformed man said in his sinister tone.

“I will do whatever needs to be done.”

“Good. Now follow me please. We have work to do.”

She was released from her chains and followed the man into the hallway, the two others falling behind them. “Work?”

“Yes. Divination is your gift. We need you to find some things for us.”

“What do you need me to find?”

They eventually entered another room with a large round table in the center that had a map on it along with Runes and stones for her to use.

“For starters,” Lawrence began, “the current location of the Hero Legion’s headquarters. There were originally ten different locations scattered around the world and now there is only one, and it’s in a new location that we haven’t found. That’s your job.”

Beth strode up to the table and looked over the stones and Runes, both ways she would be able to find what she was looking for. She opted to use the stones over the Runes and began to focus on them, find what they needed.

It didn’t take long. “Asheville, North Carolina. It’s hidden near the mountains.”

“Excellent,” a new voice chimed in. Beth turned around to see an older looking man wearing a dark turtleneck sweater with a leather trench coat. He was thin and had gray hair, and he almost resembled a rat. “I appreciate your help. But now we must make preparations for our journey.”

“Journey?” Beth asked.

“Yes. We have to save the world from the very thing that is going to destroy it.”

“And what is that?”

The man walked up to her and his eyes bore right into her soul. These were the eyes of a damaged man, a destroyed individual. And the scariest part was that she could almost see the tiniest bit of humanity left in there. “All the gifted individuals and heroes of the world. They need to be destroyed.”

“But...we are gifted individuals.”

“I know,” the man said while flashing a wicked grin. “A means to an end. Thank you for your help.”

In one swift moment, the man was around her, one arm around her neck and the other on her head. She barely had a second to struggle in his grasp before he used unimaginable strength and twisted, then proceeding to drop the body onto the floor.

* * *

 

Today was Thomas’s first training session with Minho in firebending. He was supposed to do another few lessons with Brenda, but Thomas accidentally firebended in the cafeteria out of nowhere, slightly burning Aris in the process. Luckily Aris knew how to heal burns - a waterbending technique Thomas definitely wanted to learn. But the point was that Thomas needed to learn how to control the fire so he doesn’t hurt anyone else. He knows Minho almost burned down his house when he first discovered it. Thomas doesn’t even want to imagine what he would be capable of if he lost control. Which is why Ava had set them up in a fireproof training room. Better to be safe than sorry.

“Okay greenie. Let’s do this,” Minho said.

“Minho, I’ve been here for months. Why do you still call me greenie?”

“Because I know it pisses you off,” Minho teased.

“Okay, so what’s first?” Thomas asked, disregarding his friend’s remark.

“Fire meditation. It sounds lame, and it is compared to the rest of it. But without the basics, you’ll never be able to do this.”

Minho held his palm out and let a flame appear. He did the same with his other hand and started to demonstrate what he could do with his powers, like he was the star of his own show. The flames were dancing around him, sometimes greatly increasing, other times flowing through the air delicately. “Fire was always deemed dangerous, and it is, but it instilled so much fear in people for how much damage it could create that people forget it can also be beautiful. It is its own art form in a way.”

“Who knew you were such a sap.”

“Oh, the greenie has jokes now huh?” Minho chuckled as he stopped his demonstration. “Okay, let's start. Imagine yourself next to a big fire or volcano. You want to think of the fire in your veins. Picture your body as a black figure and the only thing you can see are your glowing veins. With each breath you take, think of your veins getting hotter and brighter.”

Thomas closed his eyes and followed Minho’s instructions as well as he knew how. He created the image in his head. The silhouette of his body and the glowing veins. The veins growing brighter, hotter. Bigger. “Alright. Got it.”

“Good work greenie. Next step is ‘hot hands’. Tacky name, I know. I would have come up with a cooler name. Anyway, make it look like you are holding a ball with your hands. Imagine your body a pitch black color and your veins glowing orange like fire. Get them hotter until they are steaming. Now think of your body returning to its normal color, and your veins stop glowing, but are still orange and hot.  
“The orange light, which is your chi, then slowly comes out of the veins and into the palms of your hands. The chi should be hot as it makes its way into your hands. Your hands hot yet?”  
They were. His hands felt fiery hot! When he nodded, Minho continued.

“The trick with firebending is that it comes from the breath, not your muscles. The breath becomes energy in your body and the energy extends past your limbs, becoming fire.”

Minho moved his arms and let out a small stream of fire that quickly diminished, and Thomas was able to too. “That was awesome!” Thomas exclaimed.  “What else are we doing today?”

“You’re going to repeat that over and over until I say so.”

“What?!” Thomas asked disappointedly. “But Minho - ”

“If you don’t get it under control you can hurt someone near you,” Minho said sternly. “This is serious Thomas. Fire is one of the most dangerous abilities to have. Aris got burned already, who’s next? Teresa? Chuck? Newt? You want to hurt them?”

Thomas shook his head. No, he didn’t want to hurt anyone. He felt bad enough as it is that her burned Aris, even though it was only minor. And if he burned Chuck or Teresa he would never forgive himself.

And if he burned Newt...Thomas would probably die right there on the spot.

So he listened to Minho and kept practicing the same techniques over and over again, ensuring that he would never accidentally hurt anyone again.

* * *

 

To pass the time until Thomas was done with his training, Newt decided to busy himself and play Scrabble with Alby, Harriet, and Teresa on the coffee table. Which was a death wish as Alby was the master at this game. Newt was in third place, Teresa failing in last place. Even so, he hated this game.

But Newt was only doing this to keep Alby busy. He didn’t want him to think about Miyoko right now. Tomorrow would have been there two year anniversary if she hadn’t broken up with him at the end of summer. Alby’s been pretty good about the break up though. Only around holidays and special dates like their anniversary is when he would get upset.

This is also why that everyone agreed that this Valentine’s day  - which was a week away - they would spend together as a group so Alby wouldn’t feel left out. As much as he’d like to spend the whole day with Thomas, he could never do that to his best friend. Besides, he and Thomas could always go out another night. Plus, Newt wasn’t too big on cliche’ romantic candlelight dinners. He’d prefer a night staying in with Chinese takeout and watching a movie in bed.

“Alright, I quit,” Teresa declared, getting up from her spot on the floor. Something about her the past couple of days has been off. She hasn’t seemed as focused as she usually is and acts like there’s always something lurking around the corner. Newt got up and followed her into the kitchen to find out what was bothering her. “Teresa, you alright?”

“Yeah,” she sighed. “Just dealing with stuff is all.”

“I’m pretty good at dealing with stuff,” Newt said as he leaned on the counter.

Teresa was silent for a moment, contemplating whether or not to say what was bothering her, but she took a couple of steps closer to Newt. “Do you remember what Thomas told us about his powers? Like how fast he can learn them?”

“Yeah, Exemplars can master the buggin’ elements bloody fast.”

“That’s not all, though. He also mentioned that they rise in times of danger. It’s like his powers are growing strong to face an incoming threat.”

Newt stopped to think that over for a moment. Thomas bended the water one night out of nowhere, but that wasn’t a big deal really. But the other day he suddenly had flames coming out of his hands. So the ability to firebend came because something bad was going to happen.

Oh no.

“The vision. Sonya’s vision.” He didn’t think it would be happening so soon. He’s heard Sonya tell him about visions that take place decades away. He figured he wouldn’t have to deal with this right now.

“That’s what I’ve been thinking,” Teresa said. “It might be happening soon.”

“But Sonya can also make people’s powers stronger, so that could be it too.”

“I hope that’s the case.”

Newt was hoping the same thing. He was the one who told Thomas that they didn’t have to worry, and now, he was the one worrying.

* * *

 

Thomas came home a few hours later. Minho decided to do a few more lessons with him, going only as far as making a flame, but that was it for today. They could start fresh in the morning.

Brenda greeted him as soon as he walked in, telling him dinner would be ready in fifteen minutes. Perfect, just enough time to take a shower. Then he would eat and he and Newt would stay over the blonde’s room tonight. A perfect plan.

Which is why he was surprised to see the blonde sitting on his bed when he entered his room. “Hey, I didn’t know you were gonna be here still.”

“Yeah I wanted to wait for you.”

Thomas crossed the distance between them and planted a quick kiss to the blonde’s cheek and was getting ready to head to the bathroom. “Thanks babe. I’m just gonna shower and then we can eat and we’ll cuddle watching Doctor Who until we fall asleep.” Since Thomas was showing Newt Star Wars, he deemed it only fair that Newt got to picked what they watched some nights.

“Thomas, wait,” Newt called after him following Thomas into the bathroom.

“Yeah?” he asked as he threw his shirt over his head.

“I just...we should...uh…how do I say this,” Newt sighed.

“Newt, whatever it is you can tell me. You know that.”

While Newt was struggling to find his words, Thomas turned on the shower and stripped away the rest of his clothes. He thought by the time he got the water warm enough, Newt would be ready to say what he had to say. But Thomas looked back over to him and saw the conflict on his face, the worry in his eyes. “Hey, come here,” he said as he pulled Newt closer to him. “What’s wrong?”

Newt buried his face in the crook of Thomas’s neck and let out a soft sigh. “I’m just worried about Sonya’s vision. I know I’m the one who told you not to worry about it, but it feels like it’s gonna be happening soon.”

It’s been a while since Thomas thought about that. The thought of Newt in danger terrified him. It made him never want to leave his side. But it was going to happen regardless, whether or not he stuck by Newt’s side all hours of the day. They would have to face this threat head on. But they would do it together.

“Newt, listen. I’ve been thinking about it a lot too. But like you said, we can’t change the future. We can’t avoid fate. But whatever happens, we’ll protect one another. Always.”

Newt moved his head away from Thomas’s neck and they stared into each other’s eyes. Thomas could feel the love, the bond, and the trust they shared radiating behind those dark orbs. They were each other’s sanctuary, their safe haven. Newt was like the missing puzzle piece in Thomas’s heart, and Thomas managed to ignite the fire in Newt’s heart that had long ago burned out. He cupped Newt’s cheek with one of his hands rubbing his thumb across his face and went in for a tender kiss. Newt was more than happy to reciprocate, placing his hands against Thomas’s waist and pulling him close.

Eventually, Newt’s clothes came off as well and Thomas pulled the blonde into the shower with him. They just stood there, warm water cascading over them, pressed up against each other running their hands slowly across one another’s bodies. Thomas was rubbing his hands in circles on Newt’s sides while the blonde was running his hands through the brunette’s hair. Lips connected to share in sweet moments of bliss.

There was an uncertain danger that was awaiting them, but to dwell on what couldn’t be changed nor prevented would only ruin the present moment. So Thomas would forget all about and just stay here in this moment of ecstasy.


	18. Always Mine

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> im literally gagging at the fluff in this chapter omg

Valentine’s Day. The most romantic day of the year. A day where everyone expressed love to the one who truly meant the most to them. Some love gets reciprocated while others crash and burn before they even take off. And the overuse of everything pink and red.

For Newt, Valentines Day started with a missing warm body next to him when he woke up in the morning. He rolled over to where Thomas should have been to find nothing but a cold spot on the mattress. He blinked open his eyes in surprise and sat up on the bed. “Tommy?”

No response came. Maybe he left early for some training with Minho?

Newt went to check his phone on his nightstand when he saw an envelope resting there with his name written on it. And Newt knew whose messy handwriting that was.

He opened it up to find that Thomas left him a note.

_Newt,_

_You said you didn’t want to do anything cliche, but this probably qualifies as one. Indulge me a little, alright?_

_I’ve made a little scavenger hunt for you. Follow the clues until you find the next one and you’ll find me waiting for you with a little surprise._

_You first clue:_

_I reach for the sky, but clutch to the ground._

_Sometimes I leave, but I am always around._

_What am I?_

“You’re a dork Tommy, that’s what you are,” Newt mused.

Newt took a few moments to contemplate the clue, trying to decipher what the answer to the riddle was. A part of him knew Thomas wasn’t clever enough to come up with these on his own, but then again, he was always full of surprises.

“A tree!” That wasn’t so bad.

…

But which tree?

After twenty minutes of searching the campus, he finally found the tree he was looking for. Only because Minho was standing there. And with a...rose in his hand?

“Just for the record, I’ve been standing here for an hour,” Minho complained as he handed over the rose and another piece of paper. “You must be really good at sex or have a magic dick or something because Thomas went overboard with this. Here’s your next clue Newtie, bye!”

Newt took both items from him and watched the Asian walk away. Newt frowned, dumbfounded by Minho, the roses, and the riddles. This is what Tommy had in mind?

He then looked down to the next clue.

_Pirates are sneaky, you can say they are crooks._

_To find the next clue, go to a room that has books._

“The library,” Newt mumbled. “That one was too easy Thomas.”

Five clues and a half an hour later, Newt found himself in the gardens with Teresa holding the last rose and clue. She stood there with a smile on her face as she extended her arms to pass the items to him. “Tom really went all out, huh?”

“Yeah, he did,” Newt chuckled. He took the final clue and opened it.

_You can easily touch me, but cannot see me._

_You can throw me out, but not away._

_What am I?_

“Does that even make sense?” Newt asked aloud.

“Your back.”

Newt turned around to follow the voice to see Thomas standing at the other end of the garden, a bouquet of roses in his hand. He had the largest and most adorable looking grin on his face, like a kid in a candy store. “It’s your back. I couldn’t think of a riddle that would get you to turn around,” Thomas said sheepishly.

Newt laughed and made his way over to Thomas, a smile plastered to his face and unable to tear his eyes away from that gorgeous boyfriend of his. He took the flowers that were held out for him and gleamed at the brunette. “You didn’t have to do this you know.”

“Yeah, I did. Because you’re worth it Newt. So...will you be mine?”

“Always Tommy.”

Thomas brought his hands to Newt’s face and connected their lips. Newt couldn’t help but smile into it at his boyfriend’s cuteness and Teresa fake gagging with the others behind them.

* * *

 

Case after case, document after document, file after file, there was nothing.

Ava had contacted with her former Legion member Alec to aid in the investigations of the missing gifted individuals. Unfortunately, there search came up dry. They literally vanished without a trace. They were just...gone.

She fears of WCKD’s return. They always knew that many of the founding members had escaped when they were caught and shut down, and it was always a possibility of them to return to finish what they had started.

She decided to make contact with the Legion again. This was out of her league and she no longer had access to the resources that they did. After taking all the proper precautions on the secure line and getting through the safety requirements, she managed to get in touch with who she was looking for. _“Well if it isn’t the light of my life,” the man said. “It’s been a while hermana.”_

“It sure has been,” she mused. "Nice pun by the way." Jorge had always teased her about her gift.

_“I’m guessing you aren’t calling to see how I have been doing.”_

“I’m afraid not. If you’re not aware, there’s been several reported missing persons of children with powers. I’ve been trying to investigate as much as I can, but I don’t have the resources and credentials that you do.”

_“Transfer over any information you have, I’ll see what I can do. In the meantime - ”_

Static interrupted their conversation as the line went dead. Confused, Ava just tried to reconnect with the Legion, but found that she was unable to do so. “That’s strange,” she wondered.

A knock on her office door reminding her of her next appointment broke her train of thought as she had a lesson she had to give. There would be time to transfer the data later in the day.

* * *

 

Thomas only ever got to spend one Valentine's Day with someone, and to be frank, it wasn’t the best. This time, however, he planned on making it the best he could for Newt. He’s glad the scavenger hunt went well. It was exhausting trying to convince Minho to help him out - he was probably scared that Brenda would be offended he couldn’t come up with something as great.

Thomas knew the plan was to do something with everyone in their friend group tonight, but he decided to leave early with Newt to do their own thing.

Despite Newt’s protests to stay in for the night, Thomas won the argument and they were on their way to their destination. The brunette wasn’t going to take the blonde to a fancy five star restaurant - even though Newt always deserved the best - since Newt wasn’t too fond of upscale places. So he made reservations at the Homestead. A nice meal at Newt’s favorite restaurant would be a great night.

It’d be even better if Teresa would stop calling every five seconds. Literally _every_ five seconds. If his phone wasn’t being bombarded with text messages, Teresa was calling him.

“She still calling?” Newt asked from across the booth.

“Yeah,” Thomas sighed shutting off his phone. “No need for that to continue.”

Newt chuckled at that as the waiter brought their menus. Now Thomas could keep his undivided attention on Newt.

“So what was the relevance of all the spots where you had a clue and a rose for me?” Newt asked. “I recognized a couple as our spots, but the others not so much.”

It was simple really. Each was a spot where he and Newt had a moment together. The tree he first saw Newt under when he came to the school. The library when they borrowed - not stole - the books. The cafeteria when they first spoke. The rooftop when Thomas first discovered his power. And especially the gardens. Thomas couldn’t count how many moments he and Newt had shared there.

When Thomas told Newt all this, the blonde was grinning from ear to ear, letting out a small laugh. “I didn’t think you were such a bloody romantic.”

“Only for you.”

* * *

 

Mary and Vince were resting on the couch watching reruns of their favorite tv show. They never really got crazy for Valentines Day because they already knew how much they loved one another. They didn’t need one specific day to remind them that they were in love.

Chuck had his first Valentine ever today. For a while, he was crushing on one of his classmates - he tried to hide it, but he wasn’t good at it. It was cute.

An urgent knocking on the door disrupted the two from their quiet evening. Vince stood up from the couch and made his way over to the front door. Mary followed right behind him.

When the door was opened, an older looking dark skinned man with grey hair and a beard was standing there, looking like he was scared. His clothes were filthy, there were wounds and bruises all over him. “Jorge?”

“I wish I could say it was good to see you, hermano,” he greeted Vince. “But we have trouble.”

“What trouble?”

* * *

 

“They’re late,” Teresa said as she was pacing the room.

“I’m sure they’re fine,” Minho said from the couch. “They’re probably just too busy making out that it’s slowing them down.”

Teresa was worried sick every second the two were gone. Thomas had told her they wouldn’t go anywhere alone, but she forgot it was _Thomas_ who she was talking about. You tell him to go left, he goes right.

The least he could do was answer is phone. He hasn’t checked any of Teresa’s calls or texts. Just a simple “Hey, I’m not dead, be home in an hour” text would suffice. But no. Apparently that’s just too much to ask.

“Great, now his phone is off!”

“Maybe because you won’t stop bothering him?” Brenda supplied.

“But they could be in trouble! I just want him to be safe!”

“He’s just on a dinner date with Newt. He’ll be fine,” Aris tried to assure her.

Yeah, he could be fine. Or he could be dead. Teresa prefered not to learn that Thomas was dead.

“Look, there’s nothing you can do about it right now, so just put it out of your head, alright?” Alby said.

“Hey, Mr. Grumpy speaks!” Minho exclaimed. “You’ve been quiet all day.”

Alby just flipped the bird and grumbled that he was going to bed. Minho and Brenda decided to head off too and Teresa plopped down next to Aris, leaning onto his shoulder. “Am I being crazy?”

“No, you’re just worried about your friends. I think it’s sweet,” he mused as he kissed her cheek. “Do you want to stay up for them?”

Teresa raised her head and looked at the brunette boy. “You would do that for me?”

“Of course.”

So she spent the rest of her Valentine’s Day - or night, at this point - cuddling with Aris on the couch. But she decided to put her anger and worry aside for a little and just focus on the boy right next to her.

The boy she still hasn’t told she might be leaving.

“Hey, Aris? Can we talk?”

* * *

 

They were walking down a quiet and pretty much empty street hand in hand, chatting about whatever came to mind and passing all kinds of various stores and doing some window shopping. A lot of them were decorated for the holiday, with pink hearts and love notes on display. Too much pink in Thomas’s opinion.

Thomas took a look down at their intertwined hands, smiling at the bracelet and the lack of Newt’s arm braces. It’s amazing how far he’s come in the past few months, letting go of the fear of his powers. There was just one step left.

“Newt?”

“Yeah?”

“You know how there’s still an empty bed at our house?”  
“Ben’s old bed, right?”

“Yeah. I was thinking...why don’t you take it?”

Newt stopped in his tracks, Thomas being forced to as well since their hands were interlocked. “Huh?”

“Newt, you don’t need to be in your room any more. Look at all you’ve done. You don’t wear your braces anymore and you’re out in public! Those were huge steps for you, and I think you deserve the chance not to feel like a prisoner anymore.”

“You’re asking me to move in with you?” Newt asked, trying to play it off as a joke. “I’ve gotta say Tommy, that’s quite a bold move of you.”

_“Newt.”_

Newt sighed looked away at the ground, shaking his head. “Tommy, I don’t know. I still can’t control it while I’m asleep and I don’t know what’ll happen if I have a nightmare or something. And what if - ”

“Forget the ‘what ifs’ Newt. You have control and you won’t hurt anyone. This is the last step you have to take. After this, you’ll finally realize you aren’t a danger. You’re just a teenager like the rest of us, just with some extra awesome.”

Newt chuckled and shook his head. “You’re such a dork,” he mumbled.

“So? You’ll ask Ava?”

Newt genuinely seemed to be contemplating the idea in his mind. That alone was progress. If Thomas had asked in the past, it would have been a straight no. “Can I sleep on it?”

“Of course. And by ‘it’ I hope you meant me.”

Newt playfully hit his shoulder and they continued on their walk home, continuing past the various stores.

One of them had televisions in the window and were set to a news channel, and there was a couple of women standing outside looking in. They both seemed upset by something and Thomas stole a glance at the news program they were watching. When he realized what it was, he stopped dead in his tracks and took a step closer to the television, not realizing he had pulled Newt with him. “Tommy?” Newt asked confused by his behavior.

_“Authorities are unsure of what happened, but as you can see from the footage captured by our chopper, the Hero Legion has been assaulted.”_

The building was in flames, thick clouds of smoke rising to the sky above. The place was in total ruins.

_“It is still uncertain if there are any survivors, but there is already a confirmed nineteen dead.”_

“I have to call my parents,” Thomas told Newt as he rushed to take his phone out from his pocket.

“Tommy - ”

A sudden flash of purple and Newt screamed as Thomas watched him get hurled into a parked car across the street, the glass shattering and the blonde landing on the pavement face down.

_“NEWT!”_

Before he could even think about running towards him, Thomas was knocked off his feet barely a second later, hitting the ground hard. He got up on all fours and looked around for someone or something that attacked him and saw a girl with her hands radiating with a violet glow.

“Why, if it isn’t the young Exemplar,” she sneered, and five more figures appeared next to her, two of them being Frypan and Winston. 

And they all charged towards Thomas at the same time.


	19. Fateful Night - Part 1

Teresa finally gave up on waiting for Thomas, falling asleep on the couch with Aris. She was going to kill Thomas and Newt the minute they walked through the door. If they even showed their faces tonight. They might end up staying at Newt’s place to be alone.

After a couple of hours, she finally heard the sound she had been waiting for: her phone ringing. Aris began to stir and she reached over him to grab it and was ready to yell at her friend, but she was confused when she saw it was Mary calling her, especially so late. She quickly answered the call. “Hello?”  
_“Teresa, is Thomas with you?_ ” she asked, desperation in her voice. _“He’s not answering his phone.”_

“No, he was on a date with Newt and he shut his phone off. Is everything alright?”

_“Teresa, you have to find them! Please! They could be in trouble!”_

* * *

 

Thomas didn’t know which attack to defend himself first. Frypan started morphing multiples of himself. Winston had electricity running along his arms. The girl who threw the energy blasts was flying towards him.

He started with her. He sent a forceful thrust of air in her direction, causing her to fall back into one of the other attackers behind her. The Frypans started swarming around him, leaving him with no escape. He knew Frypan was good at close combat, but six Frypans?

Thomas made the ground below quake, causing half of the Frypans to fall over and then blew the rest of them across the street.

He turned his head and saw a flash of lightning coming right for him. A burning sensation went all throughout his body, screaming in agony as he was knocked to the ground convulsing.

 

Newt stood up from the ground, reaching up to feel a  large gash across the side of his forehead and other smaller cuts around his face. He took a step away from the car he was so ungracefully flung into and when he saw the scene before him, he panicked. Thomas was down on the ground convulsing.

Newt realized he recognized some faces of their attackers: Ben, Miyoko, Frypan and Winston. Now the look he and Frypan shared at the Homestead made sense. They wanted Thomas for something. Newt needed to save him.

He ran and stood in front of Thomas, getting his magic ready as his opponents started heading towards him. “Don’t even try it,” Newt warned.

As soon as they came charging, Newt hurled them backwards, some knocking into each other and others hitting into the buildings across the street.

He turned back to Thomas, quickly pulling him up and supporting him with one arm around his waist and Thomas’s arm around his neck. He moved as fast as he could to get them off the street and out of sight. He ducked through an alleyway and came out on the next street over. He leaned down and propped Thomas up to rest against the closest building.

His shirt was burned, a small section of it missing by his left abdomen. He was hissing in pain, still feeling the shock from Winston’s lighting blast. Newt gently put his arms on Thomas, checking for other injuries. “Thomas, are you alright?”

“Fine, fine,” he dismissed, although he definitely didn’t sound fine. “I guess I should have listened to you and stayed in for the night, huh?”

“Alright, come on. I have to get you up, we need to go.”

Newt attempted to pull Thomas off the ground, but Thomas couldn’t do it. “I need a second before I can move.”

“Thomas, we can’t stay here!  We need to go before they find us.”

“Too late.”

Before Newt  could even look at who said that, Thomas pushed Newt off of him before the brunette was grabbed by the Rachel and flew off with him. _“Thomas!”_

And he wasn’t able to go after his boyfriend because at that moment, the Frypans, George, and Miyoko came got in his way.

Despite having lessons in physical combat, Newt was by no means a fighter, so his only defense really was to dodge and use his magic to send his opponents attacks away from him.

They were clearly playing with him. One of the Frypans or George send an attack his way, then Miyoko would cast a nearby item into his direction, which he quickly stopped and forced away from him.

He knew he couldn’t just go run after Thomas. He needed to focus on these opponents first before he went after him. It killed him to leave Thomas in such danger, but if he lost focus, he could be taken out, leaving Thomas alone with all of them. And he’ll be damned if he’s going down without a fight.

 

Rachel threw Thomas hard to the hard surface of a rooftop, earning a groan from the Exemplar. He quickly stood up, just in time too, as Ben directed a blast of fire - _blue_ fire, a deadlier flame -  towards him. He sent an air attack, deflecting the fire away from his direction.

Rachel, Winston, and Ben stood side by side, each of their hands radiating with their own powers and ready to attack. “Just come with us, and the blondie gets to live,” Ben threatened.

“You aren’t going to touch him,” Thomas sneered as he charged forward.  He wasn’t going to let anything happen to Newt.

 

All the while, a man in a dark hooded cloak watched as the skirmish.

* * *

 

For the first time in the longest time, Minho was finally able to sleep peacefully. Brenda’s mattress was too uncomfortable in his opinion, and the nights he did get to spend on his own mattress, he had to endure Newt and Thomas keeping him up with their not so quiet whispering and laughing. 

He and Brenda were perfectly comfy and he was so happy he was going to get a good night’s sleep in his own bed.

Until someone barged in. “Wake up!”

Minho registered the voice as Harriet’s. He shot up startled, Brenda doing the same, and became even more confused when he saw her and Sonya standing there with their weapons, Harriet’s double edged sword and Sonya’s bow and arrows. “What the hell is going on?”

“Thomas is in trouble!” Teresa yelled frantically coming into the room with her own weapon, some form of staff, and the others coming in from the hall behind her. “We need to find him now!”

Minho literally jumped out of bed and started panicking. Brenda doing the same except being able to remain calm. Two of his closest friends were in trouble, and they needed help. But how exactly were they going to help?

“And how do we do that?” Minho asked. “We can’t just start running around the city, hoping we find them.”

“We won’t be able to find them that way,” Alby said. “Harriet can only teleport to them if they call her! Hell, we’re not even sure if they’re in trouble.”

“But if they’re in trouble, they know they can call her,” Brenda explained. “We just have to wait.”

“If we wait too long, it’ll be too late!” Sonya yelled. “We knew this was going to happen, _I_ knew this was going to happen, and I didn’t do anything to prevent it!”

It was clear the girl was upset that her brother’s life could be in danger. It was hard enough to dream about a loved one getting hurt, but to actually see that dream come true? That was a nightmare on it’s own.

“Wait,” Aris said. “I think I have an idea.”

Everyone turned to him as the brown haired boy began to explain. “Thomas or Newt need to call Harriet, right? But Teresa might be able to call out to them herself. She can tell them to call for Harriet!”

“I don’t know if I can do it,” Teresa said. “Especially since I can’t look at Thomas. I won’t be able to focus that well enough to do it.”

“You can do it,” Aris said, coming over to the dark haired girl. “You can save them. I know you can.”

Minho watched as the girl’s expression transformed to a sad and scared one to a fierce and determined one. “I can do it,” she declared.

* * *

 

Newt managed to throw George into a brick wall, taking him out of the fight for a short while. So he took one down, but still had to deal with _six_ Frypans and Miyoko.

The fight was getting quite irritating to deal with now. They kept the same attack pattern.  When Newt blocked one attack, another was right on him. He couldn’t do this forever. He was trying not to seriously hurt them, but it was starting to look like he wouldn't have a choice.

He was kicked hard in the back and it knocked him over, but he rolled and recovered to see the Frypans grinning at him. “Just give up already Newt.”

“Let us take him and you can live.”

“We promise he won’t feel a thing.”

Newt grit his teeth and stood up. He felt his anger growing and his magic with it. His hands started glowing red, along with his eyes. He was done with this game. “You won’t hurt him,” Newt threatened as he managed to use his magic to throw a nearby parked car in the Frypans direction.

Four of them were able to dodge it, but two were hit. Newt ran straight towards the others, preparing to take them down. The faster he did, the faster he could get to Thomas.

 

Thomas in meantime was struggling to fight off his opponents as well. Ben was aggressive, Winston was dangerous, and Rachel was sneaky. It was hard to deflect three incoming attacks at the same time, but he was managing not to get hit so far.

He aimed fire in Rachel’s direction, the girl swiftly dodging the attacks with her flight ability. Thomas figured the only way to take her down was from the air, so he launched himself into the air and sent an air blast in her direction. Rachel couldn’t avoid it and she went falling hard onto the rooftop.

Winston took advantage of Thomas’s distraction and sent a blast of electricity upwards his way. The brunette expected such and deflected it mid-air, only for it to hit a car down below on the street and cause it to explode.

 

Newt knocked one Frypan into another, leaving just two to deal with. Miyoko started to get closer to him, ready to attack. As Newt was about to make his move, an explosion  next to them knocked them all to the ground.

His ears were ringing and everything began to move in slow motion. He rolled over and grunted in pain. He slowly began to pick himself off of the ground, moving away from the burning vehicle beside him. He saw that the other Frypans and Miyoko were also on the ground, but they didn’t make any movements. Newt took advantage of this and decided to get back to Thomas.

He stood up clutching his side in pain, and when he turned around, he froze. He was face to face with a dark cloaked figure and he couldn’t see the person’s face.

The person reached out and grabbed Newt’s arm in a tight grip and a burning sensation went through his entire body.

 

Thomas was knocked off the rooftop by a fire blast from Ben, but he used airbending to just barely break his fall. Ben and Winston were close behind, jumping down right at him.

Then he heard a scream. Not just any scream, but _Newt’s_ scream. He turned his head and saw the blonde down the road, falling over onto the ground, and a dark figure disappearing into the shadows from next to him.


	20. Fateful Night - Part 2

Thomas snapped.

The anger surged, his veins and eyes were illuminating the pale blue once more, and he felt his insides trembling with the ferocious rage. He didn’t let himself be afraid of it this time.

No. He embraced it.

He slammed his fist down onto the pavement and created an earthquake. A large hole opened in the ground, parked cars falling into it and building collapsing due to the break in the foundation. Ben couldn’t escape it and he fell into the hole. He saw Rachel flying in his direction, attempting get a hit on him,  but he unleashed the water from a nearby hydrant and sent water crashing into her, slamming her into a wall. When Winston sent a bolt of electricity towards him, he redirected it back to the boy, taking him down with his own attack.

When all the threats were dealt with, he let go of the anger and rage that was cursing through him. His body returned to his normal state, and he was drained of energy. Just like a tornado, the atmosphere returned to a calm serene state, leaving behind a wake of destruction.

He looked at the chaos he had just created. Luckily, the building that had collapsed seemed abandoned. Hopefully nobody was hurt.

_Newt._

Thomas didn’t waste any time. He sprinted over to Newt and kneeled down next to the blonde, who’s  screams died down but was hissing in pain and gripping his arm. “Newt! Newt, what’s wrong? Newt look at me!”

Newt’s stopped his hissing and looked at Thomas with a scared and pained expression. “Thomas, are you alright?”

 _“Me?_ Newt, you were just screaming!”

“I’m okay,” he dismissed, his voice still pained. “Help me up, we have to go.”

Thomas helped his boyfriend up and draped Newt’s arm over his shoulders, wrapping his own securely around Newt's waist. “Okay, Newt. We gotta do this together, alright?”

Newt nodded in understanding, and both boys used their free arms to launch themselves into the air, Thomas using his air bending and Newt using his magic, away from the danger.

But nothing ever worked their way. In the corner of his eye, he saw Rachel taking flight again.  He didn’t have enough time to block the attack. Thomas took the hit, feeling the wind literally knocked out of him. The two fell from the sky, plummeting into the pond of the nearby park.

Thomas couldn’t see or breathe, the water pitch black. He started panicking and swam up to the surface, taking in a breath. He heard Newt resurface and take a gasp for air and the two swam to each other dragging themselves out of the water and onto the grass. They started to walk, but they were too exhausted and fell to the ground next to each other. Newt barely managed to stand and urge Thomas to get up, trying to lift the brunette but he couldn’t. He fell back down next to Thomas, landing on his knees.

“Newt, they want me. You have to go.” Thomas was not about to risks Newt’s life for his. He had to leave now before he got hurt even worse.

“Thomas,” Newt said in a serious tone, reaching over to run a hand through the brunette’s wet hair and then to cup the his face. “You asked me to be yours. I’m yours. I’m not leaving you.”

Thomas’s heart swelled at the declaration, but worry filled him just as fast. "No. Newt - "

He didn't get to finish his sentence because he heard their attackers, all of them reappearing in front of them. The two looked over and tried to stand up, Thomas failing to do so as pain shot through his entire body. Newt stood weakly and protectively in front of him spawning his magic.

It was over. They weren’t going to win this fight. He and Newt wouldn’t be able to stop them. Newt couldn’t handle them on his own.

_Thomas!_

The brunette was shocked to hear someone call his name. But it wasn’t just anyone. It was Teresa.

_Thomas, if you can hear me, call Harriet! We’re coming for you, but we need you to call Harriet!_

Thomas watched as the others began to move in closer. Newt's magic was growing, the blonde not about to back down. The next few seconds would decide their fate.

“Harriet,” he mumbled, causing Newt to look back at him. “Harriet, we need you.”

Rachel raised her glowing fist, Newt moved to block it, and the last thing Thomas saw before he closed his eyes was purple.

But not the purple from Rachel’s blast. Because it never hit. And he heard a familiar whoosh sound along with feeling the ground move.

He opened his eyes and noticed Newt looking shocked. Then he noticed a large rock that sprouted from the ground, blocking the blast, and Brenda and Minho standing in front of him and Newt. They looked at their friends and back ahead at their opponents.

“Long time no see,” Minho said when he recognized who the enemies were.

“Minho! It’s been far too long man,” Ben said sarcastically. “But it’s gonna take more than the two of you to stop us.”

“Good thing we brought more than two,” Brenda smirked. “Sonya, now!”

From behind the others, Sonya used her bow to fire arrows onto the ground that created a blinding light. Ben, Rachel, and the others all went to cover their eyes as they began to burn from the brightness.

Aris and Alby swooped in next, the brunette boy riding in on a wave from the pond and sending it towards Miyoko, freezing her in place while the dark skinned boy knocked Rachel into a nearby tree.

Minho charged forward towards Ben, the two ensuing in a fiery duel, and Brenda went after Winston.

Harriet and Sonya move towards the Frypans, using their sword and bow as weapons to fight them off. Teresa went after George, the two battling it out with their staffs, and Newt kneeled next to Thomas, staying near him in case someone got too close.

They watched as their friends kicked ass. Brenda overpowered Winston easily. Sonya and Harriet were quite versatile, moving around like they were trained assassins. Teresa split her staff into two batons, using the electric ends to stun George, and Minho through a hard flame at Ben, winning the duel.

His friends surrounded their enemies that were all beaten to the ground, and now it was over. They had won.

Rachel, Ben, and the others all look petrified. The Frypans reverted back into one, George looked like he was about to cry, and Miyoko held a stoic expression from where she was frozen outside of the group.

“It’s over,” Minho declared.

“Why are you guys doing this?” Harriet asked. “We used to be friends.”

None of them offered an answer. Rather, they just shared glances between themselves until finally Ben spoke up. “George. Do it.”

Thomas was watching them carefully, unsure of what was about to happen. But slowly, George’s veins began to glow an orange red, his skin beginning to illuminate like fire.

Then his attention was turned towards Harriet screaming and falling to the ground, Sonya moving to catch her. A hooded cloaked figure was seen backing away from her and disappearing into the shadows.

“Take cover!” Alby yelled. “George is going to explode!”

Brenda put up an Earth barrier in front of all her friends as George, now completely illuminating like the sun, exploded right in front of them, a the large blast causing a few trees nearby to catch on fire.

And when everyone looked back over, every single one of them had escaped with the exception of Miyoko. Aris was quick to focus on the flames, using water from the pond nearby to extinguish the fire. Sonya and Brenda went to check on Harriet, the girl seeming completely drained of energy. “Harriet, what’s wrong?” Sonya asked desperately.

“I don’t know,” Harriet said. “I’m okay, I just feel exhausted.”

Alby went over to Miyoko, the girl refusing to meet his eye. The girl that just left one day without a single word. The girl who broke his heart. He couldn’t find any words to say to her, so he just looked at the girl in silence.

Minho and Teresa came rushing over to Thomas and Newt, the latter dropping onto her knees and putting her hands on the boys. “Are you guys alright?”

Thomas and Newt turned to face one another and back at their friends. Thomas couldn’t believe they all had just risked their lives for them like that. They threw themselves head first into danger without knowing anything, without analyzing the threat. “Yeah, we’re okay.”

“Thank you guys,” Newt added.

Sonya, Harriet, and Brenda came over as well, the blonde girl dropping down to hold on to her brother tightly. He wrapped his arms around her as well, one of his hands holding the back of her head as she let out a quiet sob, resulting in her brother’s eyes to water too.

Thomas leaned his head over onto Newt’s shoulder, taking in the warmth of his boyfriend. He thought for sure that he and Newt wouldn’t have been able to walk away from this. But now it was over. The vision came true and they managed to survive it. They were alive. They were safe.


	21. What's Happening to Me?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry for not updating, fell behind because of midterms. and sorry i haven’t replied to your comments, they mean the world to me im just busy !!!  
> lots of dialogue in this chapter folks so be prepared

A lot had happened in the past six hours since the attack. For starters, whatever happened to Harriet resulted in the loss of her powers. When she tried to teleport everyone back home, she couldn’t. And she was completely terrified and devastated when she discovered this.

Which lead Thomas to worry about Newt. The same figure went after him too, yet he still had his powers. But Thomas heard the pain filled scream and saw Newt collapse onto the ground. Something had to have happened. But Newt kept dismissing it and said he was fine.

Then Thomas’s parents showed up with Chuck and some man called Jorge who was also retired from the Legion. When Mary saw all the bruises and wounds on her son and his boyfriend, she broke down in tears. She healed them and any other injuries the others had - except for Newt, who refused any help - once she had collected herself.

The group also brought Miyoko back with them, Ava placing her in a vacant room in the secure facility with guards outside her door. Alby was still hurting from seeing her again - Sonya too, as they were best friends - and no one could figure out why her and others who used to be their friends would turn on them.

Ava came over to the house for everyone to have a meeting. Apparently, there was something that everyone needed to hear.

People scattered across the spacious living room. Thomas, Newt, Brenda, and Teresa occupied one ouch, Minho and Alby standing behind it while Harriet, Sonya, and Aris sat at the other. Ava, Vince, and Mary stood in the middle of the room preparing themselves to speak while Jorge stood in the back corner. Chuck would have been here too, but Mary ordered him to get some sleep.

“Okay,” Vince started, clearly uneasy about what he was about to say. “Thomas, before we tell you anything, we just want to say we never told you this because we love you and thought it was best.”

“Just get on with it,” Thomas said. Keeping secrets from him almost got him and Newt killed, and he was _beyond_ angry, but he was doing his best to remain calm and give his parents a chance to explain themselves. And Newt kept a comforting hand on his thigh, keeping the brunette grounded.

His father and mother looked hurt by their son’s attitude, but nonetheless, Vince started telling them everything. “The cloaked figure you saw? We’ve encountered him before. Lawrence. When we first discovered him, we had no idea what he was. His abilities have never been seen before. After a while, we learned that he was one of the many people that were experimented on in order to receive powers.”

“Hold up,” Minho interrupted. “You’re saying his powers were man-made? How is that possible?”

“There was an organization called WCKD,” Ava chimed in. “They weren’t fond of the idea of gifted individuals. They didn’t like the fact that not everyone was on a level playing field. So they attempted to make their own. For  forty years, they were trying to genetically alter humans into mutant powered people. The government eventually discovered this and had them shut down and arrested, but they moved underground and the subjects were never found.”

“Until they started making themselves known,” Jorge said from the corner of the room.

“You see Thomas,” Vince continued. “The attack on Denver? That was them. WCKD’s victims. They unleashed themselves on the city to take revenge on what was done to them. Remember how we told you about the hero who killed the last Exemplar? His name is Janson… he’s my brother, and your uncle.”

“Uncle?” Thomas asked.

“Yes. He disagreed with the Exemplar on how to handle the situation. Janson didn’t think they were worth saving. He didn’t have sympathy for what they had suffered through. He just saw them as monsters.”

Then Mary came up over to Vince and spoke for the first time in a while. “The Exemplar understood that they were victims, despite their horrible actions. He wanted to capture, not kill, and offer them a chance at redemption. But it didn’t go according to plan. The Legion captured some, but were forced to terminate others. The rest fled.”

“And in the mass destruction,” Vince continued, “Janson lost everything. A wife, his two children. He hated the Exemplar for not trying to contain the threat, so in his rage and mourning, he killed the Exemplar and we haven’t seen him since.”

“So what does he have to do with all of this?” Teresa asked.

Vince and Mary spared a worried glance to each other, and Vince nodded as if to tell her he would be the one to speak. “He wants the Exemplars - and all gifted individuals - to cease to exist. In the past, Exemplars have made very  public mistakes, resulting in mass casualties. Before he disappeared, Janson told me he had found records of disasters that could have been prevented. He wants to ensure nothing like this ever happens again.”

“Isn’t that a bit hypocritical of him? Brenda asked. “I mean, he wants to prevent disaster, but he’ll cause havoc to do it.”

“So that’s the reason Thomas and Newt were attacked,” Harriet concluded.

“Yes, he wanted Thomas,” Mary said, looking at her son with a sad expression.

“For what?” Sonya asked. 

Mary and Vince were both at a loss for words. But Thomas knew his parents long enough. They had the answer, they just didn’t know how to say it. Luckily, Jorge seem to have gotten the cue, and stepped up to the center of the room.

“You see hermanos, there is one gem for each element which aren’t too important on their own, and a fifth Infinity gem. They all go inside the Exemplar amulet, which the Exemplar wears once he has mastered all elements and the Exemplar state.

“Janson’s ability is to mimic and steal other powers. He’s gained many over time - mind control, telekinesis, intangibility, the list goes on. But he can achieve the elements just by having those four gems, which he now does along with the Exemplar amulet since the Legion had been destroyed and the gems stolen. But he needs one more.”

Jorge paused and pointed at Thomas. “Bird-face over here has the final gem, the most crucial one. If Janson gets his hands on Thomas, he can take away his powers and kill him. Then he’ll take the last gem. If he puts every gem inside the Exemplar amulet, he can use that power to go into the Exemplar state. Once he does that, he can destroy the bond for the Exemplars, breaking the cycle and there will never be another Exemplar. Not only that, but he’ll eliminate the rest of us when he’s done with Thomas. And who knows what else Janson could do with that kind of power.”

The tension was so thick in the room that it could be cut with a knife. No one said a word, digesting the massive amount of information that had just been given.

Thomas had no idea where to begin. His mind was running a mile a minute, trying to process everything. So there were genetically altered supers, the Legion was destroyed, he and Newt almost died, and he has an uncle with henchmen who wants to kill him and who knows how many more in order to get to him.

Thomas took a gaze around the room looking at every single person. His parents who would do anything and everything to keep him safe. Ava, who had only wanted to guide Thomas and watch him succeed. Alby, the first person to help him feel like he finally found his calling as a gifted individual. Aris, the one who constantly gave him support and tips on how to improve his skill. Brenda, who pushed Thomas to his limits because she knew he was capable of so much more. Sonya, the sweet girl who always gave Thomas that boost of confidence on his worst days. Harriet, the mother hen of the group, always looking out for him without smothering him in doing so and being a great support system. Minho, the one who wasn’t afraid to put Thomas in his place when he was wrong, but who also always point out when he did something right. Teresa, his sister, the one who’s been here since the beginning of this crazy adventure and would always be by his side.

And Newt.

The one would go through the depths of hell for him. The person who’s made Thomas so much stronger. The boy who risked his life to protect. The one who got his heart pounding in his chest and who could also keep him grounded. A person who could make Thomas smile effortlessly and someone who would be by his side in the hardest times. The one who loved him unconditionally, and the one Thomas would never ever give up on.

Thomas won’t let Janson or anyone else hurt them just because he’s the target. He won’t put them in harm's way again. “So how do we stop him?”

“We can’t.”

“What do you mean we can’t stop him!? What kind of bullshit answer is that?”

Thomas was with Minho in the his outburst caused by Jorge’s ridiculous answer.

“It will be difficult, but not impossible,” Mary corrected.

“More like suicide,” Jorge pointed out. “Janson could take any one of our powers with the touch of his hand. That, with Lawrence on his side, we won’t be able to stop them. Especially not with Lawrence.”

“So we take out Lawrence,” Thomas said. “He’s our first target, not Janson.”

“I can handle him,” Ava confirmed. “I just have to get close enough.”

“Why is Lawrence so important in this?” Minho asked.

Mary took a beat to look at her husband and continued.  “Lawrence’s abilities are...complex. He’s sort of like Newt, in the magic sense, at least before he was experimented on. Now, it’s much worse.  It’s a form of dark magic. One of his powers is to...infect people, in a way. It affects their brain and they become attached to him and they live to serve him. But it can also...change people. Almost like a virus.”

“We call it The Flare,” Ava chimed in. “If one is able to resist his influence, it spreads through the victim’s body, completely erasing any trace of humanity. They are under Lawrence’s control, to be used as he pleases.”

“They’re called Cranks,” Jorge stepped in. “Essentially, Lawrence possess their souls and we haven’t found a way to reverse it. It’s incurable.”

“And he’s got an army of them,” Vince said. “There’s no telling what he’ll do with them.”

“So we have to stop him,” Minho commented.

“It’s not so simple kid,” Thomas’s father retorted.

“Yeah it is!” Brenda yelled. “Why are you not coming up with a plan?”

“It’s not like we can just wave a magic wand and they’re gone!”

And the room erupted into chaos. The teens were desperate for answers yelling at their elders while the latter were trying to calm them down and diffuse the situation. Thomas, on the other hand, was deep in thought, trying to find a solution.

Janson needs the last gem to wipe out the Exemplars. But what if it was removed from the equation? His plan wouldn’t work. That can’t stop the army of Cranks, but it’s a start. So they have to destroy the gem, take out Lawrence so the Cranks aren’t a problem, and deal with Janson and his henchmen.

It sounds easier said than done.

But as he was about to state his idea, someone yelled louder over everyone else and caused the room to be quiet. “WOULD YOU ALL SHUT YOUR _BLOODY_ MOUTHS?!”

During the entire conversation, Newt had been silent. Thomas didn’t think anything of it until now. The blonde stood up as he screamed, his body trembling. His eyes had the smallest hint of red in them, and his hands starting to faintly glow.

The entire room watched him in silence, like staring at a feral animal. Thomas stood up next to him, softly reaching for Newt’s arm. “Newt, it’s okay - ”

“No it’s not!” he screamed, jerking his arm away. “We almost got bloody killed because you’re parents, and now they’re saying there’s this twisted maniac who wants you dead! Wants all of us dead! And we’re just arguing trying to figure out what to do while he’s probably on his way here right now! He’s gonna kill us all and there’s nothing we can do about it!”

In the midst of his rant, Newt’s magic started growing, alarmingly so. Those near him started taking cautious steps back to avoid an accidental attack. “Newt, I need you to calm down,” Thomas said softy, going to reach for him once again.

“No, _don’t touch me!”_

As Newt went to block Thomas, a burst of magic was let loose, sending Thomas backwards into the wall and falling onto the floor with an ungraceful grunt.

When Thomas looked up at his boyfriend, it was clear he was petrified. The rage that was one surging through his veins was now replaced by pure terror and guilt. His eyes were so full of worry and he was taking shorty unsteady breaths, looking like he was about to fall over.

Everyone else in the room seemed to be in a similar state, still as statues. They looked at Newt like he was a bomb. If one of them made any sudden movements, he would explode.

Newt gazed around the room, his breathing beginning to slow down to it’s normal rhythms, all eyes on him. Then he turned back to Thomas. “I’m sorry Thomas,” he mumbled, gripping at his one arm  and then he left the room.

Thomas stood still. His head was screaming at him to follow Newt, to check on him and make sure he’s okay but that wasn’t Newt. Something was wrong. He’s been different since last night. Maybe it was just his response to almost getting killed. Or maybe it was something even worse.

Then his feet caught up with his mind. He ignored everyone’s stares as he went outside the house in search for the blonde. And it was harder than before. Newt didn’t go to any of their normal spots. He wasn’t in his room, he wasn’t in the gardens. Eventually, Thomas found him on the rooftop where he first discovered his ability all those months ago.

He was sitting at the edge, legs dangling over the side and he was looking at the city in front of him. Thomas moved to stand behind him, a couple of feet away to still give him some space.

“Sorry about that back there,” Newt said without even turning around. “Haven’t been feeling like myself.”

Thomas lowered himself into a crouching position next to Newt and studied him. His voice seemed...off. There was a sense of dread hidden in it. Others may have failed to notice it, but Thomas knew when Newt was trying to hide something. “Something is bothering you,” he stated.

Newt let out a small sigh and slowly started lifting his right sleeve. “Guess I can’t hide this anymore.”

As he lifted up his sleeve, a sense of horror filled Thomas’s heart. On the blonde’s arm were dark, sickly black veins spread across his pale skin. It started around his forearm and went as low as his wrist and almost past his elbow. “Something happened to me last night, Thomas. And I...I don’t feel right.”

Thomas looked down at the ground. He was scared, worried, and a small part of him was angry that Newt was hiding this. “Why didn’t you tell me?” he asked, looking back over to him.

“Didn’t think it would matter,” Newt said nonchalantly, and Thomas was appalled at how calm Newt was being about all this. How could it not matter? “I just figured my powers would go away, but they haven’t yet. So I’m assuming it’s... _something else_.”

“The Flare,” Thomas mumbled in disbelief. No. Newt couldn’t have the Flare. He can’t. Thomas won’t let it happen. He won’t lose Newt to this.

“And it’s incurable,” Newt said turning to look at Thomas, his eyes looking lost and afraid, yet eerily calm. “I can feel it spreading through me, Thomas. It feels like my veins are burning, like it’s crawling in my skin. There’s this itch in my head and I can’t scratch at it. That’s why I accidentally hurt you before. I’m starting to lose control.”

“We can fix this Newt,” Thomas said with more determination than anything else he’s ever spoken. “I’m going to find a way to fix this.”

Newt’s face turned cold and gave Thomas a stern look. “No. Janson is the problem. We deal with him, make sure he doesn’t win. Who knows what’ll happen if we don’t stop him. We have to beat him, Thomas. No matter the cost.”

“We can do both, Newt. We can beat him and save you too.”

“No, Thomas. This is bigger than us. This is the state of the world we’re talking about. One life shouldn’t stand in the way of the rest of the world.”

“I’m not giving up Newt. You can’t either.”

Newt didn’t say anything anymore. There was nothing that could be said anyway. He just turned his gaze back to the city and pulled his sleeve back down. Thomas went to sit next to him on the ledge and intertwined their fingers together, Newt resting his head on the brunette’s shoulder.

Thomas _will_ find a way to save him.


	22. Heart of Courage

Things were getting worse.

The aftermath of the attack was all over the news. Footage from security cameras around them had picked up some of the fight, along with some people who were filming them from a safe distance instead of running away from the danger. The damage and chaos was placing the blame on heroes. Glade City was tolerant of powered people, but to have it happen in your city is a different story.

Thomas tore his eyes away from the screen when it mentioned a woman and her child and a few others were injured during the encounter. No deaths, thankfully, but that didn’t change the fact that he was responsible for innocent people getting hurt.

The television clicked off and he felt a body sit next to him. He didn’t need to look to know who it was.

“It’s my fault, Dad. I’m the reason why those people got hurt.”

“No, Thomas. You’re not the one to blame for this.”

“Turn the TV back on, that’s not what everyone else is saying.”

Vince reached out and gave his shoulder a tight squeeze, solemnly looking down at the floor. “Thomas, we try to save everyone. But sometimes, you can’t. Sometimes, even we aren’t enough to save them. But we never stop trying, we never give up hope. Now is not the time to be blaming yourself. Now is the time to take action and do something about all this. Take all that guilt you feel, put it away. You let your emotions control you, you won’t be able to save anyone. And right now, there’s people who are going to need saving.”

Thomas sighed and looked down at his lap before he looked back at his father. Everything everyone has told him - keep his emotions hidden, emotions are dangerous - it all seemed wrong. Emotions are what make people human. Without them, what would he be?

Nonetheless, he nodded to his father. “Come on,” Vince said. “We’ve got to start planning.”

Thomas and his parents were going to be working on a plan to protect the city. In the meantime, Ava had sent the rest of the students back to their rooms until further notice. She - and Newt - also thought it would be best if the blonde remained secured in his room for the time being. If he were to lose control of his powers, the damage could be catastrophic.

But despite everyone telling Thomas there was no way to save Newt, he wouldn’t give up. He would find a way, he has to. He’ll save him.

No matter what.

* * *

 

Four individuals were lined up on the floor, kneeling in front of a man pacing back and forth. His lips were formed in a thin line, his eyes empty, and his rat looking face lacking any sort of emotion. But the quartet knew Janson was beyond angry.

“So, which one of you would like to explain to me why after destroying the Legion, six of you went on your own to capture the Exemplar, only to fail and come back with one of you captured, and one of you dead?”

The younger ones remained silent.

“Now tell me, whose plan was this?”

The four glanced nervously at each other. They all knew what was about to happen. One of them wouldn’t be leaving this room.

“It was George’s,” Winston lied. “He thought it would please you if we brought him to you.”

The others nodded their heads in agreement, silently praying Janson would believe their answer. But the amused look on his face proved them wrong. He already knew because Lawrence followed them out there. Lawrence always lurked in the shadows and knew everything.

“Wrong answer.”

In a split second, Janson’s hand grabbed the tan skinned boy by his throat. He started choking, gasping for air. Slowly, the life began to drain out of him, and Janson began to look more alive. Winston’s skin grew pale, his attempts to catch a breath for fading. Then his body went limp, collapsing to the floor with a loud thud.

Janson then practiced the new ability he had just acquired by zapping the rest of them with a bolt of electricity, strong enough to seriously injure them but not enough to kill. Pain filled cries flooded the room as they each crumpled over to the ground. “Now stay out of my sight before you end up like Winston. And dispose of his body.”

Janson walked out of the room with a small sadistic grin marking his face and entered the hall to find Lawrence waiting for him. “Did you contact WCKD?” he asked the deformed man.

“Yes, they said the Grievers will be ready in a couple of weeks, but I persuaded them to make it a couple of days.”

“Good. And good work  stealing the teleportation for me, it will definitely come in handy.” It felt like Lawrence was the only reliable ally he had here. “You saw my nephew out there, right? How far is he in his training?”

“He used all four elements. But he can’t control the Exemplar State yet. His emotions still control him.”

“Perfect. In order for me to kill him, I need him in Exemplar State. He’s at his strongest then, but he’s also the most vulnerable.”

“I attempted to influence the blonde that was accompanying him, but I wasn’t able to get through to him. So I resorted to _other_ measures.”

“Excellent. The more fragile his mind, the easier it will be. Now, let’s go get the final gem.”

* * *

 

Thomas had just finished explaining his plan to destroy the gem to his parents, Ava, and Jorge, but they already seemed to disagree with him. “It won’t work Thomas,” his father said. “You don’t have the power to destroy the gem.”

“Blondie might,” Jorge spoke. “Chaos Magic is strong enough. If he still has control over his powers, he can do it. But it’ll come at a cost to you, Thomas.”

“I’m willing to do whatever it takes.”

“ _No_ Thomas! No!” Vince yelled. “Destroying the gem will kill you! And your mother can’t resurrect you, it would kill her to bring you back! No way, it’s not happening!”

Thomas paused and held his father’s gaze. He was usually a man who stayed calm and had control over his emotions, never one to lose is head when he assumed his hero role. But Thomas could see his facade fading, his wall crumbling down. For the first time in his life, Thomas saw his father terrified. He turned to his mother and saw the distraught expression she wore. And it didn’t sit well with him.

But they needed to stop thinking with their emotions, like he needed to. They needed to see the bigger picture.

“Dad, remember what you always told me when I doubted myself not having powers? You said having these gifts isn’t what makes you a hero. It’s what you do for the world, the people you save, the sacrifices you make. I’m prepared to make this sacrifice.”

He watched as his father, mother, Ava and Jorge studying him, Thomas noticing the latter looking at him with a newfound respect. But his father still didn’t look convinced. “You may be, Thomas, but you can’t expect me or your mother to. What about Chuck? And do you think Newt would be on board with this?”

Thomas had to look away from his father when he said that, his gaze dropping to the floor. Newt did say one life couldn’t stand in the way of countless others. He was talking about himself when he said it, but if he said it, he might think the same.

No, Newt wouldn’t do it if it meant killing Thomas. Not even if it meant saving the world. He understands though, he wouldn’t be able to do it if the roles were reversed..

So he won’t tell Newt the whole truth. Just part of it. “I’ll get him to come around,” he lied. “Dad, Mom, please. I won’t let anyone get hurt or killed for me. At least promise me it will be our plan B. Please.”

Mary turned to Vince, gesturing to leave the room for a moment. As they went out, Ava whispered something to Jorge and left in a hurry. The Hispanic man then walked over to Thomas and clasped his hands onto his shoulders. “I don’t know you that well, hermano. But I can see your parents in you. You’ve got a courageous heart. Not many would be willing to die for something like this. _That_ is what makes you a true hero, not being the Exemplar.”

Thomas offered a small nod and the man left the room as well, leaving him alone with his thoughts. His mind began to wander, thinking of any plan that they could come up with to stop Janson, to stop Lawrence, to stop all of them.

 

To save Newt.

 

Then Thomas had a sudden thought. He remembered something from one of the books he read a while back about Exemplars and their ability to use astral projection and travel into Limbo, the world between the living and the dead. There were many Exemplars who made this journey in order to seek answers from ancient diety’s and wise spirits. At first he thought it was just made up tales, but it’s at least worth attempting. There has to be someone who would be able to save Newt. He just needs Ava to guide him through it.

His parents walked back in, and before he could even get a word out, his father held out a hand to stop him. “We’ve talked, and we think we’ve come up with a plan to stop Janson.”

“And I think I know a way to save Newt.”

* * *

 

Solitude once again. It’s like he’s the Greenie all over again, keeping himself isolated from the rest of the students. Sonya, Minho, and Alby tried to keep him company, but Newt sent them away. The last thing he needs is his sister and friends watching his humanity slip away. Besides, he could barely hold a conversation right now. It literally felt like his brain was short-circuiting, it wasn’t working anymore. But thinking about it would only make it worse.

Newt tried to keep his mind occupied, but it started to feel like he couldn’t handle the simplest tasks. He tried organizing his desk, but his brain wasn’t functioning and he just couldn’t do it. He tried cleaning, but his hand began to tremble and wouldn’t stop. He flexed his fingers, trying to get the sensation to go away, but it wasn’t working.

His veins still felt like they were burning him, a fire deeply laced within them that could not be extinguished. It started spreading too. It wasn’t just his arm now. He lifted his shirt in the mirror and saw the black veins sprawled across the entire right side of his body, some reaching towards his chest and some going up to his neck. The area around the veins stained his body like bruises, with dark blues and purples making themselves at home on his pale skin.

His eyes started getting darker too. The smallest hint of black was forming in the corner of each eye. Darkness couldn’t even begin to describe how black they were. He was losing the fight. He didn’t have long.

There was this itch in his brain, a constant static, this desire to claw inside his head to get it to stop. Make the pain stop. Make the itching stop. He just wanted it to stop. All of it. He couldn’t hold on anymore.

He lashed out and started throwing things, knocking things over. He pulled out his kitchen drawers with silverware and threw it across the room, a loud clang of utensils echoing in the room. He threw a chair, tipped over his bed, and he finally came out of it when he slammed his fist into a wall.

He collapsed onto the floor, still not completely out of it. He was totally alone. The guards were ordered not to enter, no matter what. Newt didn’t want to risk hurting anyone. And that’s all he was yearning for.

But behind all the static, behind the itching, behind the burning, he kept repeating the same sentence over and over. A sentence he would repeat until he believed it.

_Tommy will find a way to save me._

* * *

 

“Thomas, you know you can get stuck in Limbo right?” Ava asked worriedly. “I won’t be able to guide you back.”

Yeah, but if he does nothing, he loses Newt. And that was the worse option. “I’ll find a way.”

“He can do it,” Teresa said from next to him. “You can do it Tom.”

“How are you so sure?”

It sometimes worried him how Teresa always had some blind faith in him. He could tell her was about to jump off a bridge into choppy water, and she would be right there next to him, ready to take the leap.

“Because you have to. It’s Newt, you won’t let him down. And besides, you’re probably the only person who’s capable of doing something so reckless and coming back unharmed.”

Thomas chuckled and studied the girl, seeing the worry behind her eyes. She trusted him to do this, but it still terrified her. He pulled her into a hug and she buried herself into his neck, wrapping her arms tightly around him. “You come back to us, Tom.”

“You know I will.”

They seperated and Thomas turned to Ava. “I just want to see Newt before we do this,” he told her.

“That’s fine. I have something to give him anyway, so I can meet you there in a little while.”

He nodded, gave one last smile to Teresa, and made his way to Newt. He ran into Sonya on the way, who decided to tag along and see her brother.

Outside the room, there was a guard stationed there. There was no reason for it. Newt was isolated in a room where he couldn’t use his powers. He wouldn’t be a harm to anyone. So Thomas politely told the guard to get lost.

He knocked on the door for Newt, but no answer came. He figured as much, since Newt wouldn’t want anyone near him right now. He knocked on the door again. “Newt? It’s Thomas and Sonya. We’re coming in, alright?”

He turned the doorknob and entered the room, shutting the door behind him. He looked around at the mess of Newt’s place. It was like an earthquake happened. Books scattered across the floor, a table and chairs flipped over. And there was a small trail of blood. But no sign of Newt. “Get Ava now,” he said to Sonya. The girl quickly ran off to find her as Thomas continued inside. “Newt? Are you alright? Where are you?”

Thomas hurried his way over to the bathroom hoping to the find the blonde there. He did. But it wasn’t what he wanted to find.

Newt was curled up against the wall, his hair in disarray as if he was pulling at it, the visible side of his face sporting sickly looking veins, and the smallest bit of black blood dripping down his lower lip. And when Thomas made a move to rush over to him, Newt’s head snapped in his direction abnormally fast, like an animal.

His eyes were completely black, any trace of that beautiful brown gone. Not only were there veins along his face, but all along his neck and presumably the rest of his body by now.

 

And then he lunged at Thomas.


	23. Into Darkness

Teresa and Brenda were amazed, staring at the vial of blue liquid that was being shown to them in Ava’s office. “This is the closest we’ve gotten over the years,” Ava said sadly. “We haven’t made progress in over a decade, even with technology constantly advancing.”

This was one of the reasons why Teresa felt that science was her true calling. That would be how she would be a hero. She wasn’t a fighter. She could save people in a different way than the rest of her friends.

“Will it work?” Brenda asked.

“An injection is only a temporary solution,” Ava sighed as she placed a syringe into the vial, drawing out a dosage of the liquid. “I need to get this to him as soon as possible. Otherwise - ”

“Ava!”

Rushed footsteps approached the trio and they turned towards the yelling to see Sonya sprinting over to them. “It’s Newt!”

* * *

 

As soon as they collided, they fell to the floor, the duo rolling across the room until finally Thomas managed to get the blonde off of him. He backed up hurriedly, trying to get some distance from him. Newt was groaning in pain as he lifted himself up on all fours. And when he snapped his up towards Thomas, the brunette’s heart broke.

He could see the void black eyes of the virus taking over him, but now, just underneath, there was a trace of those brown orbs Thomas had fallen in love with. Newt was struggling, battling hard with the Flare. And it looked like he wasn’t going to win.

He was panting, black ooze dripping from his mouth along with his saliva. Some of his hair was matted down and sticking to his forehead. And those next words that came out of his mouth would haunt him for the rest of his life.

“Tommy…” Newt pleaded. “Kill me!”

The fear, the desperation, the agony in his voice.  Thomas couldn’t shake it from his mind,. Not even when Newt got up and tackled Thomas to the ground.

Thomas had to remind himself that this wasn’t Newt right now. This was the Flare. He had to keep telling himself that or else he wouldn’t be able to save him.

Thin, strong hands, that used to fit so perfectly within his own, now gripped tightly around  his neck. Thomas tried to push his boyfriend off of him, but Newt was a lot stronger than he looked.

“Newt, _please_!” Thomas begged. Newt had to hear him, he was still in there, still fighting.

The grip around his neck began to loosen and he felt a surge of oxygen flow into his chest. The boy straddling him began to slow his breathing, his black eyes beginning to clear just the tiniest bit. Realization dawned on the poor boy, as the terror of what he was doing was shown on his face.

“I’m sorry Tommy. I’m so sorry…”

“It’s okay Newt,” Thomas whispered, a single tear falling down his face. “It’s okay.”

Newt moved off of him, crawling near the kitchen counter, trying to find the strength to stand up. Thomas stood up as well, closing the distance between the two. “Thomas...you need to leave. Please. I don’t want to hurt you. I can’t - I can’t control it anymore. I can’t hold on - I -”

“I’m not leaving you, okay? I’m gonna get you through this. You just gotta hold a little longer, alright?”

Newt’s breathing began to go ragged again, his grip on the counter tightening. He grit his teeth and let out a growl. “GET AWAY!” And then Thomas was being shoved away from him, but he just came back over and moved in closer to Newt. “You’re still here, Newt! Listen to my voice, stay with me alright? Focus on me!”

In a swift move, Newt spun around with a roar of anger and launched himself at Thomas again. The brunette’s body went crashing to the floor and the back of his head hitting it hard.

He groaned in pain and reached for the back of his head. But a sudden movement nearby made him blink the pain away and look up.

There was Newt, on his knees next to Thomas, hands firmly grasped around a knife and slamming downwards.

Thomas grabbed Newt’s wrist, trying his hardest to keep the blade from going right into his heart. Newt snarled and pushed harder, the blade centimeters from his chest. _“Newt!”_

But Newt wasn’t there. He was gone. Thomas couldn't save him.

He failed Newt.

Thomas let out a tormenting scream as the blade protruded his flesh, the metal burning him.

He couldn’t fight Newt, he wouldn’t. Not if it meant the only way to end his suffering was death.

And then just like that, it was over.

Someone was standing behind Newt and stabbed him in the neck with a needle, injecting whatever blue liquid was inside of it. His breathing slowed, his eyes cleared, and for the smallest second, he locked eyes with Thomas.

“Tommy…”

Thomas barely heard the weak whisper that escaped from his lover’s mouth. The one word that reminded Thomas that Newt was still in there, still trying his best to beat this virus.

And then his body fell limp to the floor. Thomas immediately crawled over, hovering above Newt, mumbling his name like a prayer in disbelief. He watched Newt’s void eyes slowly close, a single tear slipping out, almost like a cruel reminder that his humanity was still there but being ravaged.

“Are you alright?” someone asked, kneeling down to look at his wound.

Thomas could barely focus right now, staring at Newt’s still body. His chest was rising and falling with a steady rhythm, and one of the veins near his neck seemed to be fading, although it barely made a difference. Thomas looked behind him to see Brenda standing there with a now empty syringe in her hand with worry crossed on her face, Ava kneeling next to him with Sonya and Teresa behind her.

“What did you give him?” Thomas asked.

“It’s called the Bliss,” Ava said. “It isn’t a cure, it just slows the Flare down. Unfortunately, it renders the person to an unconscious state. He won’t wake up until the virus has completely taken him.”

It won’t take him. Thomas was going right now. “Ava, I need you to guide me through the steps.”

“Thomas, you have a knife wound on your chest-”

“I don’t care, you can take care of it after we’ve finished.”

“Thomas-”

“ _I’m not going to lose him!”_

Ava’s face softened, while Teresa, Brenda, and Sonya stood quietly on the other side of the room, the latter crying at the horrific state her brother was in. Ava let out a small breath and nodded her head. “Okay, let’s begin. Once you’ve gone into Limbo, I’ll get your mother to take care of your wound.”

Thomas nodded, and looked back to Newt one last time. “I’m coming for you Newt,” Thomas whispered so softly that no one could hear him, and placed a kiss to his forehead.

He moved himself towards the side of his room and sat crossed legged and began to meditate. He listened intently to Ava’s instructions and let himself get lost in a trance.

Within a few moments, he was gone.

* * *

 

Nothing. He felt nothing.

Thomas opened his eyes to find a bleak world around him. Rising from the colorless grass he awoke laying in, he stood to see the unnatural realm he journeyed to. Everything was grey and black, like being lost in a world of noir. Trees missing leaves stood hundreds of feet tall and there was a light fog engulfing the perimeter. In the distance, a faint white light was making its way through the trees, the only thing illuminating the dreary place. It’s supposed to be an unsettling and eerie realm, yet somehow Thomas was able to remain calm. Nothing phased him. It’s like he was numb.

He turned back to where he awoke from, only to see himself seated on the ground in a meditative state, his body covered in a blue light.  “What the hell?” he mumbled to himself, his voice creating a small echo.

“You don’t belong here,” someone says from behind him, making a much larger echo.

Thomas looks in all directions but sees no one. “Hello?” he calls out. “Hey! Can you help me?”

Silence. Deafening Silence.

“Please,” he begged.

He waited and waited, but no one answered him. So he ran a hand through his hair and started walking. To where, he had no idea, but he couldn’t just wait for someone or something to show up.

It was all too quiet.  It felt like being trapped in a nightmare, just waiting for a large creature to chase him through the woods only to wake up screaming and drenched in sweat.

It was strange - his voice makes an echo, but his footsteps didn’t. Even as he stepped through the water, there was no sound of a splash, he couldn’t hear the droplets fall from his feet and back down into the water.   There had to be someone here, someone who had answers. Or at least knew where to find them. But each turn of his head did not aid his thinking.

He was too busy glancing at his feet watching where he was stepping that he didn’t see it. His head bumped into something, and he withdrew from it startled. And his fear only rose when he looked up and saw a body hanging by a noose.

And it wasn’t the only one. There were countless of them, seeming to stretch on forever.

“The souls of the damned.”

Thomas spun on his heels to see an older looking man standing about teen feet away from him. His hair was grey, falling to just above his shoulders, and his skin was quite wrinkled. He looked like he was three hundred years old.

“What is this place?”

* * *

 

Teresa had spent the last hour pacing back and forth in the room.

Newt was moved to his bed, and she could tell he didn’t have long. The Bliss may have slowed it down, but it was clear that Thomas needed to hurry up.

And Thomas was seated against the wall, legs crossed and eyes closed as he had been since he made his way into Limbo.

Sonya was sat next to her brother’s bed, holding his hand and crying, whispering things into his ear - Ava said that he can still hear everything, but he just won’t wake up - while Harriet stood behind her doing her best to comfort her.

Mary never once took her eyes off of Thomas, waiting for any indication that he had returned. Vince was here for a little while, but he left with Jorge, Alby, and Aris to question Miyoko about Janson’s plans. And Minho and Brenda went with Ava, who had called all of the students of the school to a gathering. A war was coming, and they needed to be prepared. Vince, Mary, Ava and Jorge decided to only take those who volunteered themselves. If anyone chose flight over fight, they would be allowed to leave to a safer area.

At first, the adults were against the idea of the kids participating in this battle, but Teresa and her friends argued that this is what they’ve been training for. They were meant to be the future heroes, so they were going to step up and save the world. And Teresa would do anything to keep Thomas and her friends safe.

Sonya was finishing recalling a story of her and Newt’s childhood, something about a Christmas present gone wrong. She called her brother an idiot and let out a tiny laugh.

And the sad part was, Teresa could hear Newt talk back to her in his head. He would say some witty remark or defend himself from his sister’s attacks. Newt was still there, still barely holding on. Stubborn, just like Thomas.

“How long do you think he has?” Sonya asked Mary.

Mary finally turned away from her son to look at the broken expression of the young blonde girl. “I’m not sure,” she admitted. “I don’t want to lie to you, because I don’t want to give you false hope. But I believe in Thomas. I know he’ll come through.”

“Yeah, he loves Newt more than anything,” Harriet said to Sonya. “He’ll save him.”

“I’m not surprised they have such a strong bond, considering their powers,” Mary said, glancing once back at Thomas.

“What do you mean?” Teresa asked.

“The two are kind of connected. Like the yin to the yang if you will. No single power is random. There’s a design that we are all apart of. Pieces to a puzzle. Every power has an opposite. Water and Fire, Air and Earth.  If someone like Newt became too powerful, only the Exemplar could stop them. And if the Exemplar needed to be stopped, Newt’s magic is probably the only thing that could stop him, since it comes from the Infinity gem. People with their gifts always felt a somehow unexplainable bond, a tug towards one another, but I’ve never heard of the two falling in love.”

The raven haired girl took a look at her unfortunately sick friend lying on the bed, and then over the closest thing she had to a brother.

_Tom, we’re running out of time._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this chapter was too long so i broke it up into two, the other half will be up soon!!


	24. The Soul That Must Awaken

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> disclaimer: the concept of energy bending comes from avatar, not from me!!

The man took a step closer, looking Thomas up and down before nodding once. “Haven’t had an Exemplar here in over a century.”

“How do you know I’m an Exemplar?”

“I assume you are here for something.” The man did not answer his question once again. But the man looked just like that: a man. Despite looking so withered, he seemed too human to belong here.  “Yes. I need to know how to get rid of the Flare. Do you know how? Or do you know somebody who does?”

The man stood unphased, like he didn’t even hear Thomas speaking. Instead, he looked over at the corpses hanging all around them. “They all have the Flare,” he said. “They’ve all reached past the Gone. When it gets to that point, there is no saving the afflicted. They become soulless monsters.”

“So how do I save him before he gets to that point?”

The man had yet to show a single emotion on his face, but Thomas could swear he almost saw the tiniest hint of pity in the man’s eyes.

Almost.

“You’re the Exemplar, you have the power.”

“What? No I don’t. I can only bend the elements.”

The man narrowed his eyes and took a step forward, walking in a circle around Thomas. “Water - the element of change. Earth - the element of substance. Fire - the element of power. Air - the element of freedom. Combine them for a power that has long been forgotten.

“The true mind can weather all the lies and illusions without being lost. The true heart can tough the poison of hatred without being harmed. Before time, darkness thrived in the void, but always yielded to purifying light. In the era before the Exemplar, it was not the elements that were bent, but the energy within ourselves, the minds and souls. To bend another's energy, your own spirit must be unbendable, or you will be corrupted and destroyed."

Thomas wished he had paid more attention in literature class now. And he knew asking for a simpler explanation was going to be in vain. So he took a moment and tried to decipher the elaborate explanation he was given.

Darkness yields to light.

Elements can be bent, but so could energy.

A bendable spirit will be corrupted.

He is the light that darkness succumbs to. He has the ability to bend energy - whatever that means, but it can corrupt him. He can take his powers to bend a person’s energy.

“You’re saying I can bend energy.”

The man nodded. Despite learning he had a new power - and the fact that he was able to interpret the man’s puzzle - this didn’t give him the solution he needed.  “But that doesn’t help me. The Flare is more of a virus, not energy.”

“ _Everything_ is energy. You must go now, but be warned. I see the storm coming towards you in the real world. A storm that may cost you your life. At least with this technique, you stand a chance. Don’t waste what I’ve told you.”

And the man turned and began to walk into the fog. “Wait!” Thomas called out for him to stop, but the man disappeared like vapor into the mist. He didn’t tell him _how_ to bend energy.

And he didn’t tell him how to save Newt.

“No…”

This couldn’t be it. This isn’t how it’s meant to be. Newt’s not supposed to die of the Flare! Newt’s not meant to be hanging from a rope in Limbo for the rest of existence! He’s supposed to move in with Thomas and their friends! He’s supposed to finish Ava’s school and get a high school diploma! He’s supposed to be a hero! He’s supposed to be with Thomas forever!

Thomas let out a scream that was a mix of frustration and anguish and fell to his knees sobbing. He had failed Newt. How was he supposed to live with himself after this?

 

“Tommy?”

 

The brunette shot his head to his left to see Newt standing a few feet from him. “Newt!” he yelled.

The two ran to each other and embraced tightly. “Tommy what the hell are you doing here?” the blonde asked as he pulled away, holding Thomas’s face and wiping away his tears.

Thomas took a moment to register Newt’s appearance and… he was different.  He looked Flare free, but he was transparent like a ghost and black and white just like everything else in Limbo. Yet he was still able to feel him. The warmth was gone, but he could at least still feel him. “I came to find a way to save you.”

“I know that, you bloody twat. I can hear Sonya speaking to me, she keeps telling me to hold on because you’re coming for me. I mean _why_ are you here? You shouldn't have come! You can get stuck here!”

“I couldn’t give up on you Newt. Not you. I told you to leave me when we got attacked, but you stayed with me. Because you said you were mine. Newt, I’m yours too. And if that means crossing worlds to get you back, you know I’d do it in a heartbeat.”

The blonde smiled, a sad smile, but it was a smile nonetheless. He wrapped his arms around Thomas again and Thomas held him tight. “It’s okay, Tommy. Don’t worry about me. Worry about Janson.”

“How can I not worry about you Newt? You know if the roles were reversed you would do the same as me.”

“If the roles were reversed, you would tell me the same thing I’m telling you now.”

They were both hypocrites. Each was willing to risk their own lives for the other, but wouldn’t let the other risk their life for themselves. Thomas guesses that’s what love is.

And as much as Thomas wanted to stay and hold him, he needed to go back to the real world. The longer he stayed, the less time Newt had left. The realization that he had to leave Newt here alone again hurt him. And although he knew that going back would save him, he couldn’t help the guilt overcoming him. “Newt, I’m gonna go now so I can bring you back. I’ll save you.”

“No Thomas, please,” Newt begged. “Just go back and worry about Janson. Don’t do anything to save me.”

“If I do nothing you’ll die! Newt, this is probably worse than death!”

“Thomas-”

“No Newt! You didn’t listen to me when I told you to run, so I’m not listening to you now.”

Thomas was angry. Angry at Newt for being so selfless. Angry at Lawrence for giving Newt the Flare. Angry that no matter what he chooses, one of them could die.

And he was scared. Scared that he couldn’t save Newt. Scared that he might die. He’s ready to make the sacrifice, but it doesn’t make the finality of death any less terrifying.

And Newt looked scared and angry too. Thomas sighed, took a breath, and wrapped his arms around Newt, the blonde reciprocating immediately.

“I don’t want you to die for me Tommy,” Newt whispered.

“I won’t. And neither will you.”

Reluctantly, Thomas pulled away from his boyfriend. His window of opportunity was fading, so he told Newt he loved him and started running towards the direction which he came. He found his real self and mirrored the position he was in, closed his eyes, and began to meditate his way back to the real world.

Back to Newt.

* * *

 

As much faith as Teresa had in Thomas, her hope was dwindling. Fast.

She didn’t know much about the Flare or how the Bliss worked, but it didn’t take a scientist to conclude that Newt didn’t have long. The veins that had barely faded or ceased to grow were almost consuming him now. It pained her to watch her friend suffering this way. She can’t even begin to imagine how Sonya or Thomas feel right now.

Teresa glanced at Thomas again, the brunette still seated against the wall. But something was different. She noticed the smallest of movements in his body. His breathing was changing, his body starting to shake softly.

He was coming back.

As if on cue, Thomas awoke startled and stumbled to his feet as he began to rise, darting straight towards Newt. The others in the room started to flood Thomas with questions, but it was obvious he couldn’t hear a word they were saying.

He only saw Newt.

 

Thomas took in a deep breath and began to concentrate. _A true heart and a true mind can survive the corruption. He is the light, and the Flare is the darkness that will yield to him._ He put on hand over Newt’s heart and another against his forehead and closed his eyes. He has the power. He can do this.

He searched his mind, his soul. He focused on the energy, the Flare. He searched deep within himself. He directed all of his power into finding it.

  
  


He doesn’t know how long it’s been, but he started to feel it happen. In his mind, in his heart, in his veins. He was healing Newt.

  


The women in the room surrounded the two, watching as Thomas's veins began to burn a bright blue. Then he grimaced in pain, wobbling a bit but regaining his stance. His veins on his arms that were glowing blue now turned black, as if the Flare was flowing through his body.

And Newt’s veins looked like they were returning to their normal state. His skin began to show hints of his normal tone.

 

Thomas could feel it moving inside of him. It was burning his entire being. He could feel it circulating all through his body, especially in his heart. It hurt like hell, but he wasn’t about to stop. He would bear this pain for Newt.

Focus, stay true, or he’ll lose.

He became more exhausted, more drained, but he remained determined. When he finally felt the last remnants of the virus leave Newt, he collapsed to the ground.

His mother was at his side in an instant, pulling him up to a sitting position. “Thomas? Thomas! Are you alright?”

But Thomas didn’t listen. He used every bit of strength he had left - which wasn’t much - and climbed up and sat on the bed next to Newt.

 

He cried at seeing him looking perfectly healthy, despite some of the dried blood still on his chin. His chest was rising and falling in even breaths, and there didn’t seem to be a trace of the Flare left in him. “You did it, Tom!” Teresa yelled.

Sonya ran over and wrapped her arms around him, sobbing into his neck. He held her tight and let a few of his own tears fall.

A small gasp of air turned their attention back towards the body resting on the bed. There was Newt, slowly blinking his beautiful dark brown eyes open. Thomas smiled and couldn’t help the joyous laugh that escaped from him or the tears that slipped from his eyes when their gazes met. He leaned over Newt, pressing their foreheads together. “You’re okay, Newt. You’re okay.”

Newt reached a hand up to cup Thomas’s cheek, wiped away a fallen tear and formed a small smile, letting out a faint sob. “Thank you Tommy.”

Sonya came over on the other side and Thomas moved out of the way so they can have a moment, the girl yelling at her brother not to scare her like that away. In which Newt replied back with a sarcastic comment that earned a laugh from everyone and a small slap to his arm from his sister.

Their brief moment of joy was interrupted when Ava and Vince came into the room. The two looked over in surprise at Newt looking completely healed. Vince walked over to his son and squeezed his shoulder affectionately, offering a small smile. “You did it son.”

Thomas smiled and nodded to his father, and then turned his attention to Ava. “While I’m thrilled to see that Newt is okay, we need you Thomas. We’ve called a gathering of the students and it’d be best if you were there.”

“Why do I need to be there?”  
“You are the Exemplar after all. You’re meant to lead us.”

To lead them?

Thomas can barely walk without tripping on nothing, and now Ava is saying he has to lead them into battle?

“We’ll give you time of course,” Ava added, wanting to give the group a moment.

“No,” Newt said lethargically. “We don’t have time to waste. He’ll go now.”

“Newt - ”

‘’Tommy.” Newt called and put a hand on the boy’s arm. “I’m alright. Go. I’ll get cleaned up and I’ll meet you there.”

“No, you’re going to rest,” Thomas ordered.

“There’s no time for anyone to rest,” Newt said, moving his legs off the bed and going to stand, Sonya staying by his side just in case he might fall. “Go, Thomas. I’ll be right behind you.”

Thomas sighed. Newt was right. He was okay now and he didn’t need Thomas to look after him. And any moment, chaos would be reigning down on them. It was time for him to step up and be the hero he needs to be. The world has to come first now. He needs to be willing to do whatever it takes to keep it safe.

So he wrapped his arms around Newt one more time, because he just needed to feel him again, and he was warm, his heart was beating, and he’s alive. When he let go, he turned to Ava and his father and nodded at them. “Let’s go.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> tbh don't expect fast updates like this lol, i was just rushing to get this part of the story wrapped up so i didn't leave you guys hanging. almost done though! five or six chapters left!!


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